Friday, 29 March 2024

Mendocino County Public Health, education officials collaborate to improve air quality for children during future wildfires

MENDOCINO COUNTY, Calif. – After the most recent fire, Mendocino County Superintendent of Schools Michele Hutchins reached out to Mendocino County Public Health Officer Dr. Gary Pace to see how they could work together to address the issue of poor air quality and its effects on school-aged children.

The Mendocino County Public Health Emergency Preparedness Program had already planned to use surplus funds from the California Department of Public Health to purchase industrial air scrubbers to protect the health of the most vulnerable people in the county – the young, the infirm and the elderly – in the event of future wildfires.

Based on Superintendent Hutchins’ request, Dr. Pace assured some of the scrubbers were intended for county schools.

An air scrubber is a portable filtration system that removes particles, gasses and/or chemicals from the air within a given area.

These machines draw air in from the surrounding environment and pass it through a series of filters to remove contaminants.

Public Health will distribute the scrubbers to key community partners to maximize their benefit.

Five units designed for use around children will be on permanent loan to the Mendocino Office of Education for use in local schools to reduce students’ exposure to air pollution.

The scrubbers will be strategically placed in classrooms and/or gymnasiums for those with breathing issues or who have compromised immunity.

The additional seven high-capacity units may be placed in shelters, libraries, rural healthcare facilities, and/or senior centers, depending on the situation.

“We are excited to collaborate with the Air Quality Management District and the Office of Education to protect our children from the negative health effects of wildfire smoke,” said Dr. Pace. “Since masks are not effective in preventing smoke exposure in youth, we are working with the schools on creating some clean-air rooms to help the most vulnerable people in the county – our kids.”

He explained that children and older adults are more likely to be affected by health threats from smoke than any other age group. Children’s airways are still developing and they breathe more air per pound of body weight than adults.

“It is imperative that we work together to reduce risk and improve indoor air quality for our children who, when in school, occupy more densely populated space than any office, store, or governmental building,” Superintendent Hutchins said.

This joint effort will help reduce the number of days a school may have to close, and will reduce the number of children who may be absent during any wildfire event that affects our area.

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