Title: “Forest fires and public health: Understanding the risks and consequences”
Abstract
Wildfires are extreme natural or artificial events that release organic carcinogenic health hazards like polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs).
Most of the released PAHs are trapped in burnt ash, a part of which was transported and settled on different mediums like soil and water. After
strong rainfall events, PAHs enter into surface water bodies through surface runoff, thereby deteriorating water quality. This study aimed to
explain the human health risks associated with exposure to water contaminated with PAHs due to wildfires. Due to their high concentration,
increased exposure, toxicity, and recalcitrant nature, 16 PAHs are classified as priority pollutants by the United States Environmental Protection
Agency (USEPA), of which Benzo(a)pyrene (BaP) is highly toxic to humans. Interaction human health risk assessment was conducted using the
modified weight of evidence method, USEPA. Exposure to individual BaP poses a risk to children (HQ = 1.59) and adults (HQ = 6.83) due to its
high toxicity. Exposure to water contaminated by PAHs resulted in higher health risks for both BaP equivalent and a mixture of PAHs. Cancer and
non-cancer risk due to dermal exposure was more elevated than oral exposure due to higher lipophilicity of PAHs. PAHs pose a higher dermal risk
(HQ int =330 and cancer risk=3.06×10 -1 ) than oral exposure (HQ int =6.83 and cancer risk=6.25×10 -4 ). Thus, effective PAH monitoring is
required in different environmental mediums for their effective removal.
About the Speaker
Dr. Tanushree Parsai is an Assistant Professor in the Environmental Engineering division of the Civil Engineering department at IIT Madras. She did her bachelor’s in Civil Engineering and then did her masters in Environmental Engineering. She is a recipient of gold medals for obtaining the highest CGPA in her Bachelors’ and Masters’ programs. Motivated to work in field of Environmental Engineering she joined Indian Institute of Technology Delhi for her PhD in the year 2016. Her doctoral research focused on stability of mixture of nanoparticles in water medium and associated health risk. She was awarded best Thesis Dissertation award in the year 2022 for her research work at IIT Delhi. Prior to joining IIT Madras, she was working as an Assistant Professor in Indian Institute of Technology Mandi, Himachal Pradesh. She is working on different aspects of the interaction of emerging contaminants in environmental medium, removal of a mixture of contaminants, nanoparticles, microplastics, Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and associated health risk assessment. She has published more than 15 papers, book chapters and conference publications in the field of emerging contaminants fate and risk assessment.
