Florida, United States, government records provide a new resource for studying fire in landscapes managed with prescribed fire. In Florida, most fire area (92%) is prescribed. Current satellite fire products, which underpin most air pollution emission inventories, detect only 25% of burned area, which alters airborne emissions and environmental impacts. Moreover, these satellite products can misdiagnose spatiotemporal variability of fires. Overall fire area in Florida decreases during drought conditions as prescribed fires are avoided, but satellite data do not reflect this pattern. This pattern is consistent with prescribed fire successfully reducing overall fire risk and damages. Human management of prescribed fires and fuels can, therefore, break the conventional link between drought and wildfire and play an important role in mitigating rising fire risk in a changing climate. These results likely apply in other regions of the world with similar fire regimes.
Background:
Preharvest burning of sugarcane is a common agricultural practice in Florida, which produces fine particulate matter [particulate matter (PM) with aerodynamic diameter
(
)] that is associated with higher mortality.
Objectives:
We estimated premature mortality associated with exposure to
from sugarcane burning in people age 25 y and above for 20 counties in South Florida.
Methods:
We combined information from an atmospheric dispersion model, satellites, and surface measurements to quantify
concentrations in South Florida and the fraction of
from sugarcane fires. From these concentrations, estimated mortalities attributable to
from sugarcane fires were calculated by census tract using health impact functions derived from literature for six causes of death linked to
. Confidence intervals (CI) are provided based on Monte Carlo simulations that propagate uncertainty in the emissions, dispersion model, health impact functions, and demographic data.
Results:
Sugarcane fires emitted an amount of primary
similar to that of motor vehicles in Florida.
from sugarcane fires is estimated to contribute to mortality rates within the Florida Sugarcane Growing Region (SGR) by 0.4 death per 100,000 people per year (95% CI: 0.3, 1.6 per 100,000). These estimates imply 2.5 deaths per year across South Florida were associated with
from sugarcane fires (95% CI: 1.2, 6.1), with 0.16 in the SGR (95% CI: 0.09, 0.6) and 0.72 in Palm Beach County (95% CI: 0.17, 2.2).
Discussion:
from sugarcane fires was estimated to contribute to mortality risk across South Florida, particularly in the SGR. This is consistent with prior studies that documented impacts of sugarcane fire on air quality but did not quantify mortality. Additional health impacts of sugarcane fires, which were not quantified here, include exacerbating nonfatal health conditions such as asthma and cardiovascular problems. Harvesting sugarcane without field burning would likely reduce
and health burdens in this region.
https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP9957
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