The health effects of wildfire smoke

Worker approaches a blazing wildfire in a forest.

DEOHS wildfire experts are investigating how smoke affects our health and strategies to reduce its impacts

 

DEOHS wildfire smoke experts were featured in a recent webinar hosted by the UW School of Public Health

Wildfires are natural and inevitable in our forestlands. Climate change is making our wildfire seasons longer, hotter and more dangerous.

The UW Department of Environmental & Occupational Health Sciences (DEOHS) has a long history of leading research into the impacts of wildfires on human health.

Through our research and outreach activities, DEOHS faculty and students are building our understanding of how wildfire smoke can damage our health and the best ways to protect people and communities from harm.

Learn about our impact, research and expertise below.

Our impact

Joan Casey sits at a wood table outside on the UW campus with trees in the background.

Seeking sustainability and environmental justice

New DEOHS faculty member Joan Casey uses big data to analyze population-scale health problems and solutions

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Claire Schollaert stands on the UW campus in front of trees and a metal sculpture.

Mitigating the health threats of wildfire smoke

Claire Schollaert, the 2023 DEOHS Outstanding PhD Student, shows how forest management can improve community health by reducing wildfires

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Utility workers in cherry pickers work on electrical power lines.

These four regions of the US are hardest hit by power outages

Prolonged power outages plague regions already facing climate and social vulnerability, new study shows

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A woman looks on as a boy blows into a respiratory monitoring device.

DEOHS collaborations explore child health and socioecological conflict

DEOHS and partners examine “healthy home” solutions in Yakima Valley and ecosystem-health links in Brazil with awards from UW Population Health Initiative

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Photo of downtown Seattle, I-5 and surrounding neighborhoods on a smoky day.

Our most-read stories of 2022 

Global recognition, new faculty and cutting-edge research: counting down our top 10 blog posts of 2022

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Three youth volunteers from Duwamish Valley Youth Corps smile wearing yellow safety vests, two giving a thumbs up, in a Duwamish Valley neighborhood in Seattle.

Empowering youth to seek climate solutions in their communities

DEOHS and Duwamish River Community Coalition join new program engaging Latino and Indigenous youth in community climate impacts

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In the news

Wildfire communication gaps persist for Spanish speakers in Washington. These groups are working to close them
June 30, 2025 | Northwest Public Broadcasting | Featured: Maria Blancas View

DOGE withdraws remaining $866 of UW researcher’s grant, reflecting contradictory mission of the EPA
May 28, 2025 | The Daily | Featured: Elena Austin View

Hurricanes, fires, floods: A rising threat to cancer care
May 20, 2025 | Medscape | Featured: Joan Casey View

In California, flawed air rules threaten farmworkers as wildfires pump more smoke onto fields
May 19, 2025 | Inside Climate News | Featured: Edward Kasner View

DOGE canceled this UW scientist’s grant — to save just $866
May 10, 2025 | The Seattle Times | Featured: Elena Austin View