Wildfires are burning in many locations across New Jersey and drought conditions make it likely that more could begin. Smoke from wildfires can severely impact air quality, creating unhealthy conditions, including in our public schools.
Below is guidance and a set of resources for local associations in affected schools to share with administrators to help ensure safer and healthier working and learning conditions for staff and students. If your district is experiencing unsafe air quality due to wildfires and your district is not taking the appropriate measures to remedy the situation, please contact your UniServ Field representative.
if your building is in the vicinity of smoke from the fires:
- Reduce strenuous outdoor activities (especially for children, the elderly, or those with underlying cardiovascular risks).
- Encourage staff performing strenuous outdoor activity to take indoor breaks and utilize disposable N95 respirators if needed, in accordance with your respiratory protection program.
- Operate HEPA-filtered portable air purifiers in classrooms and offices where available (many of our clients have these in stock following COVID precautions);
- If smoke odors are entering offices or classrooms, consider closing windows and adjusting HVAC settings to reduce outdoor air introduction rates until smoke has cleared,
Consider how the ASHRAE Planning Framework for Wildfire can minimize occupant health impacts from wildfires:
- Building managers should have a “Smoke Readiness Plan” to reduce outside air entering the building
- Trigger the Plan using the United States Air Quality Index found at airnow.gov
- Keep additional filters (MERV 11 and 13 can remove smoke particles)
- Use low cost PM 2.5 monitors in various parts of the building to monitor trends
- Use portable room air cleaners, i.e., HEPA filters (refer to CADR ratings via EPA or AHAM)
Resources
- ASHRAE – Planning Framework for Protecting Commercial Building Occupants from Smoke During Wildfire Events – 2023
- NIOSH Science Blog. Protecting Workers and the Public from Wildfire Smoke. Jun 29 2023.
- Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) in Wildfire Smoke Accumulate on Indoor Materials and Create Postsmoke Event Exposure Pathways. Aurélie Laguerre et al. Environmental Science & Technology (2023).
- The persistence of smoke VOCs indoors: partitioning, surface cleaning, and air cleaning in a smoke-contaminated house. Jienan Li et al. Science Advances (2023).
- Physicochemical Characterization of the Particulate Matter in New Jersey/New York City Area, Resulting from the Canadian Quebec Wildfires in June 2023. José Guillermo Cedeño Laurent et al. Environmental Science & Technology (2024).
The above information is adapted from a memorandum from Dr. Richard Lynch, the lead Certified Industrial Hygienist at EMSCorp, who provides environmental health and safety services for various public schools across New Jersey, dated Nov. 12, 2024.