research Highlight: Environmental health hazards and wildland firefighting: a qualitative analysis
Author: Alissa Cordner
This research highlight summarizes an article recently published in Fire Ecology that examines underrepresented hazards in wildland firefighting.
Key Messages:
Firefighter health and safety are a top priority for decision-makers and researchers, yet environmental health hazards are understudied and often insufficiently mitigated.
Wildland firefighters are broadly aware of the range of hazards they experience on the ground, including routine hazards and those that are specific to incidents or locations.
There are practical and cultural barriers to reducing many exposures.
Wildland Firefighter Health is Understudied and Not Fully Protected
Despite growing attention to wildland firefighter safety, little is known about the full scope of environmental health hazards experienced by firefighters on the job. Attention to firefighter health is increasing, and the profession is identified as causing certain cancers. Wildland firefighters are exposed to dozens of environmental and workplace hazards, and they experience acute and chronic physical and mental health effects. This study uses research from a long-term qualitative research project with federal wildland firefighters to identify many types of hazards, some that are quite routine and others that are specific to locations or incidents.
Widely Recognized Hazards
Wildland firefighters are broadly aware of many of the commonly identified hazards of their work, including smoke, heat, and human factors. Firefighters described strategies taken to reduce their exposures to smoke, and they shared stories of how smoke and heat exposure impacted their health. They also brought up human factors including fatigue, stress, and nutrition.
Routine but Unacknowledged Hazards
Wildland firefighters are routinely exposed to several categories of hazards that are largely unacknowledged: non-vegetation smoke, dust, chemicals in their personal protective equipment (PPE) and other gear, engine exhaust, and fuels and oils. For example, many firefighters wear Nomex PPE for most or all of their shifts, yet certain Nomex textiles have high levels of “forever chemicals” and brominated flame retardants. This contributes to dermal and ingestion exposures of toxic chemicals.
Incident- and Location-Specific Hazards
Firefighters also experience hazards specific to particular work locations or incidents. While on large or complex fires, they may be given unhealthy food and water. Government housing and facilities may expose them to mold, insects and pests, electrical hazards, or asbestos. Fires may burn on or near mining, military, or industrial sites, potentially exposing firefighters to hazards ranging from abandoned mines to radiation.
Barriers to Addressing Environmental Hazards
Many wildland firefighters are trained in risk assessment and mitigation, yet some environmental health hazards may be difficult or impossible. Some interventions, such as thorough soap-and- water handwashing, are impossible or impractical in rugged and remote work environments. Some location-specific hazards could only be fully avoided by not engaging in fire activities in those places. Cultural factors may also mean that firefighters are reluctant to acknowledge and address hazards, especially those that are routine and thus seen as normal.
Implications for Managers, Policy Makers, and Researchers
To protect the health of wildland firefighters, all decision makers should be aware of the full range of hazards that are part of the job. This broader array of hazards could be covered in trainings in a more holistic and connected way, rather than mentioning individual hazards in isolation or ignoring them altogether. Mitigations should include improved PPE, individual-level care to reduce exposures, administrative controls that decrease exposures for all firefighters, and inclusion of environmental health hazards in risk assessments and incident decision-making about whether and how to engage on wildland fires.
