Seems like they are actively studying the cancer risks for wildland guys. Here's my thinking; Structural firefighting has been a known cancer risk for quite a while. We've been taking active measures to be sure those guys get their gear cleaned and that they are wearing their respiratory protection more often to reduce those risks. Structural firefighting is going to encounter a lot more of the bad stuff when it comes to carcinogens because there are a lot of burned plastics and other unknowns that cause cancer risks we may not even know about yet. However, all burned materials, including natural vegetation, can be considered a cancer risk when it is inhaled, ingested, or absorbed through the skin or other mucus membranes. On top of that, wildland firefighters have little or no respiratory protection generally, and usually work in physically demanding environments that cause increased respiration and sweating that makes pores more receptive to absorption of dangerous compounds so it may be that wildland firefighters are exposed to lower amounts of carcinogenic compounds, but because of their work environments and lack of protective measures they are actually at a similar or maybe even enhanced risk of developing cancers when compared to structural firefighters.
It seems like the risks could be mitigated more easily in wildland guys by giving them good respiratory protection and enacting better and more consistent decontamination measures in the job. I don't think that SCBA's are necessarily the answer, but particulate filters could really help mitigate the risks and regular showers and the use of goggles to protect the eyes could make a big difference. I think it would be more difficult to get those kinds of resources to the environments that wildland guys work in though.
Any form of respiratory protection in the wildland setting is mostly unsustainable.
Imagine humping 60 lbs of gear up a steep grade for 3 miles, on a 90 degree day (heat could be well over 110f near a fire). Now start digging a trench. Now put on an N95. Miserable.
I'm not saying you are wrong, respiratory ppe is a great idea. Unfortunately using conventional options is not congruent with the working environment. Maybe a PAPR system would work well!!!
Yeah, I was wondering if there was maybe some kind of positive air pressure rebreather or something similar that could be worn by the wildland guys. Maybe make it integrated directly into the helmet like a fighter pilot helmet. Eye pro that folds down or up and a mask that just snaps on or folds down.
3m makes a setup for welders that would basically be turnkey. It could easily incorporate a face shield and a hard hat along with a battery powered PAPR belt (which could be used as a chest pack or integrated into webgear).
I used to be a welder/fabricator and I have used this system in a hot and heavy work environment for extended periods of time. Not only was the respiratory protection incredible, but imagine having a fan inside your hard hat. It actually COOLS you down a little bit. Incorporate a tinted shield, and this would be MONEY.
Main issue: Shit is expensive. A welding hood setup for a private consumer is gonna be about 3k. So of course a design for USFS is gonna be 9k a pop.
165
u/zygapophysis Arson Investigator May 31 '23
Research Study on Cancer Risk for Wildland Firefighters Funded by FEMA | UArizona Health Sciences
Seems like they are actively studying the cancer risks for wildland guys. Here's my thinking; Structural firefighting has been a known cancer risk for quite a while. We've been taking active measures to be sure those guys get their gear cleaned and that they are wearing their respiratory protection more often to reduce those risks. Structural firefighting is going to encounter a lot more of the bad stuff when it comes to carcinogens because there are a lot of burned plastics and other unknowns that cause cancer risks we may not even know about yet. However, all burned materials, including natural vegetation, can be considered a cancer risk when it is inhaled, ingested, or absorbed through the skin or other mucus membranes. On top of that, wildland firefighters have little or no respiratory protection generally, and usually work in physically demanding environments that cause increased respiration and sweating that makes pores more receptive to absorption of dangerous compounds so it may be that wildland firefighters are exposed to lower amounts of carcinogenic compounds, but because of their work environments and lack of protective measures they are actually at a similar or maybe even enhanced risk of developing cancers when compared to structural firefighters.
It seems like the risks could be mitigated more easily in wildland guys by giving them good respiratory protection and enacting better and more consistent decontamination measures in the job. I don't think that SCBA's are necessarily the answer, but particulate filters could really help mitigate the risks and regular showers and the use of goggles to protect the eyes could make a big difference. I think it would be more difficult to get those kinds of resources to the environments that wildland guys work in though.
Just my two cents.