Joseph Wilkins / Weston Roundtable (May 4, 2023)

Decadal Lessons Learned: The Story of Wildfires, Air Quality, and Environmental Justice

Wildfire risk and severity have recently grown substantially due to climate change and other anthropogenic factors such as increasing development at the wildland-urban interface. Existing research has characterized substantial adverse health impacts from exposure to wildfire-associated smoke.

Few existing studies have quantified long-term health impacts from wildfires, and none have used a wildfire-specific long-term dose-response coefficient for mortality, which we have now developed. These findings are critical for guiding societal investments for wildfire prevention and suppression.

The Weston Roundtable is made possible by a generous donation from Roy F. Weston, a highly accomplished UW-Madison alumnus. Designed to promote a robust understanding of sustainability science, engineering, and policy, these interactive lectures are co-sponsored by the Center for Sustainability and the Global Environment (SAGE), the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, and the Office of Sustainability.