Thank you to everyone who attended the ISS3!

Presented by International Association of Wildland Fire
In partnership with NWCG Smoke Committee; UC Davis Air Quality Research Center; UC Davis Office of Research and the UC Davis School of Medicine.

PROGRAM SCHEDULE 

PRESENTATION ABSTRACTS

The symposium was an international nexus of research, management and policy with an audience of governmental air quality regulators; land managers and fire practitioners; research and extension communities; public health professionals; air quality and fire weather forecasting communities; and climate change researchers.

The symposium was a fully virtual conference which allowed us to expand our attendance.

 

 

 

Symposium Chairs
Pete Lahm, Chair
Jessica McCarty, Deputy Chair

Steering Committee
Chris Akins
Chuck Bushey
Wayne Cascio
Katie Conlon
George Geisler
Sandra Hall
Sarah Henderson
Matt Hurteau
Fay Johnston
Sim Larkin
Barry Lefer
Kelly Martin
Maria Mirabelli
Kris Ray
Mikel Robinson
Erica Sasser
Kim Skufca
Cabe Speary
Anthony Wexler
Joseph Wilkins

Program Committee
Katie Conlon, co-chair
Susan Stone, co-chair
Carol Baldwin
Eric Berg
Jim Crawford
Paul Garbe
Sumi Hoshiko
Pete Lahm
Jakob Lindaas
Yongquiang Liu
Jessica McCarty
Dar Mims
David Mueller
Susan O’Neill
Steven Ostoja
Mark Parrington
Ana Rappold
Mikel Robinson
Morgan Varner

IAWF Principles of Conduct

Embracing Diversity and Inclusion: Being a diverse and inclusive organization will enable the International Association of Wildland Fire to learn from others, grow our understanding, and find new ways to address, understand and implement solutions to complex problems. The IAWF desires to maintain a positive, empowering, inclusive and innovative culture that enables all members of the fire community to feel safe and valued when contributing to the IAWF. We want to operate in a flexible and open manner to meet our membership’s needs and to help members achieve their fullest potential.

Read IAWF’s Full Diversity and Inclusion Policy

Principles of Conduct – Living Our Values – Leading by Example
In the conduct of personal and professional matters, IAWF places high importance on the values of integrity, responsibility and reputation. We are committed to maintaining high standards both within the organization and in our dealings with others in our daily lives. Our leadership has developed these Principles of Conduct to define our accepted and unacceptable ethical behaviors. We have established guidelines for all members at all times and non-members who may be participating at any IAWF conducted activities. It helps ensure that IAWF promotes, achieves, and maintains high standards of practice and it provides a benchmark for members and non-members participating in IAWF activities to use for self-evaluation.

All symposium attendees are required to read and agree to adhering to the Principles of Conduct.
Read IAWF’s Full Principles of Conduct

If You Witness or are Subjected to Unacceptable Behavior
If you are subjected to unacceptable behavior, notice that someone else is being subjected to unacceptable behavior, hear of any such incidents, or have any other concerns, please notify an IAWF representative immediately and report the incident. There will be several means to report any occurrences of inappropriate behavior. These include:

  • Face to face:
    • Any IAWF officer, Board Member, Diversity and Inclusivity Committee member, or any IAWF individual wearing a Planning Committee nametag, a session moderator, or anyone staffing the registration or IAWF tables are designated IAWF representatives and you can talk to them.
    • Someone will nearly always be at the at the Symposium registration desk and you can report to them and they will contact an IAWF designated representative.
  • Anonymous reporting:
    • Use the Spot application.
    • Connection links and scan codes are provided in mobile app and on posters around the facility.
    • The link to report for an IAWF event or IAWF involvement from your computer or phone is: TALK TO SPOT LINK

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sustainability

The IAWF and Symposium Organizing Committee are committed to hosting a sustainable conference. This includes:

  • Providing limited printed materials;
  • Providing a Mobile Application with digital agenda;
  • Providing recycling receptacles throughout the venue;
  • Providing thoughtful giveaways (sustainable and useful);
  • Working with the venue to provide sustainable catering choices, and using local food vendors as much as possible;
  • Providing 2 locations and a Virtual Conference to minimize travel.

Mentoring

We would like to invite you to participate, either as a mentor or mentee, in our Mentoring Program at the 3rd International Smoke Symposium.

What is mentoring?

The first mentioning of the word “mentor” goes back to an ancient Greek story about a young child called Telemachus who grew under the supervision of an old trusted friend of his father’s named Mentor. Since then, the name of this character started being used as a common term for “trusted tutor”.

Today, we use the word  “mentor” for anyone who makes a positive, guiding influence on another person’s life. ‘Mentoring’ is the process of direct transfer of experience and knowledge from one person to another.

Our Approach

Symposium attendees can express their interest in being a mentor or mentee when they register. Then prior to the symposium we will match the mentors and mentees. We will provide information to guide matches throughout the symposium.

What makes a good mentor?

  • Commitment to the mentee’s learning and project goals.
  • Ability to provide positive feedback, encouragement, and advice when requested.
  • Interest in seeing and supporting the mentee’s growth and success in their professional or personal goals.
  • Ability to ask key questions to support the mentee to develop their problem-solving and creative thinking skills, and to be resilient and independent.
  • Ability to establish clear expectations and commitments, to express these to the mentee, and to ask for the same.
  • Generosity with tools and approaches that support others to learn
  • Willingness to share key contacts and networks with the mentee, and to source other areas of expertise when required.

Please sign up when you register!

PRESENTER GUIDELINES (PDF)

Schedule & Format:
Please refer to the program schedule to determine the length of your presentation, the majority of the presentations are 12 minutes + 3 minutes for Q&A and transition. There are also 5 minute Ignite Talks. Please ensure you don’t run over your allotted time by practicing your talk.

All Power Point Presentations must be uploaded the day prior to your presentation. Please upload via this online link.

UPLOAD PRESENTATION

 

Virtual Conference

We are pleased to share that we will have two options for your presentation:

  • You can pre-record your presentation. We will schedule blocks of time between March 30-April 10th to record your presentation. This means you will need to have your presentation ready in the next couple of weeks so please consider that when making your decision.
  • Present your presentation live via WebEx during the Virtual Conference. We will probably schedule all of the live presentations on Tuesday and Wednesday, April 21st and April 22nd, so you would need to be available one of those days. We will have practice sessions to ensure you are comfortable with the technology – you would be required to attend one of those practice sessions.

Your presentation should be formatted 16:9, which is the default for PowerPoint 2016.

 Virtual Posters

We will include a virtual poster session. You will be permitted to submit one PDF or Power Point slide series not to exceed 10 slides prepared exactly the way you would submit this to a printer.

  • The slides would contain the same content that you would display on a printed poster board.
  • The first slide should show the full title of your submission.
  • Each slide title should be placed in a title placeholder. This allows that title to come across in the hyperlinks on the left bar.
  • Place the title of your presentation and your name at the bottom of each slide.
  • It is suggested that type size should be at least 24 point. The typeface chosen should be a simple and clear one (e.g., Helvetica).
  • When importing or inserting any graphic file (picture) it is important to make sure that it will function on any computer and does not require proprietary software to view. The acceptable formats are as follows: Bitmap (BMP), GIF, JPEG (JPG), Portable Network Graphic (PNG), and TIFF (TIF).

The deadline to submit your virtual poster is April 6th.

https://iawf.submittable.com/submit/162314/virtual-poster-presentation-upload-iss3

Questions: Send any questions to Mikel Robinson at [email protected].

Special Issues

We are working on ISS3 Special Issues in four professional peer-reviewed journals:

We are also seeking applied program, management strategies and policy articles to feature in Wildfire Magazine.

The deadlines for each will be around June 30-July 1, 2020. Please visit the ISS3 website for details of these special issues. We are now accepting Expressions of Interest to publish in one of these Special Issues. Complete this form no later than May 4th. After the deadline you will receive an invitation to submit.

EXPRESSION OF INTEREST FORM

General Guidelines for Presenters

IAWF individually and together with other partners around the world, plan, implement, and present significant conferences and workshops annually. These events are the foundation of our information dissemination and facilitation of global communication about wildland fire information.

We place high importance on integrity, responsibility and reputation and expect members to display high standards of behavior that are conducive to creating and maintaining diverse and inclusive practices. This includes the manner in which we conduct ourselves in normal business practices and at our conferences.

In order to better assist conference presenters, panel members, and other participants, we have prepared these guidelines to help improve understanding of our changing social environment, the importance of considering audience perception, and how to prepare to ensure that appropriate language and images are used during presentations at conferences and workshops. In this guide we provide some helpful advice on presentation ethics; oral presentation language in terms of implications to sensitivity, respect, and inclusivity; thoughts on developing presentation visual aids; and identified areas of inappropriate behavior.

IAWF expects all presenters to:

  • Provide opportunities for others to learn and develop in ways that are in keeping with the IAWF commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion.
  • Refrain from demeaning, discriminatory, or harassing behavior, materials, and speech.
  • Refrain from harassment of or any form of discrimination against another participant, staff member, volunteer or others.
  • Always fully disclose and resolve any existing or potential conflicts of interest.
  • Always keep proprietary information confidential unless the appropriate person authorizes its disclosure.

Presentation Ethics:

(From: https://courses.lumenlearning.com/publicspeaking/chapter/chapter-3-ethical-speaking/)

  • Be honest, avoid plagiarism, and identify sources.
  • Decide when to cite – all information that is not public knowledge should be cited.
  • Cite sources properly.
  • Understand paraphrasing and direct quotations.
  • Use accurate citations.
  • Be mindful of potentially sensitive graphics and words
  • Provide honest and open communication.

Principles of Responsible Presentations:

Speakers must balance perceptions, intentions, speaker rights, and responsibility to audiences. Any person participating in IAWF activities is expected to refrain from demeaning, discriminatory, or harassing behavior, materials, and speech.

Ethical communication may not be hard to deliver, but at times can suffer from failure to fully understand effects of aspects of communication. All presentations must strive to:

  • Promote diversity,
  • Use inclusive language,
  • Avoid hate speech, and
  • Present clear and respectful visual aids.

Promote Diversity:

  • Speakers have a responsibility to appreciate differences among individuals and groups.
  • Consider both your audience and your speech content.
  • Use both sexes in hypothetical examples.
  • Use co-cultural groups in hypothetical examples.
  • Do not use negative or derogatory comments related to to gender, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, religion, age, national origin, socio-economic status, nudity and/or sexual images.
  • Avoid stereotypes.
  • Always remember, even if it doesn’t concern you – it may offend others.
  • Look at your slides – try to balance the type of people presented so they are not all the same or in stereotypical roles.

 Use Inclusive Language:

 Avoid Hate Language:

  • Words are powerful, choose them wisely.
  • Avoid using words that convey any expression of intolerance and hatred.

 Present Clear and Respectful Visual Aids:

  •  Understand that times and social expectations have changed, and cultures are different around the world – what was acceptable in the past may no longer be acceptable now and what may be acceptable or taken as humorous may be offensive in other cultures.
  • If you are making a joke, or think it is funny – it may not be to others – remember you don’t know their circumstances. Try to understand your audience and prepare accordingly.
  • Visual aids should be evaluated in terms of the wording and pictures they use, and analogies they convey.
  • Visual aids must value sensitivity, incorporate respect, and be inclusive.
  • Be mindful to those who have color blindness (look into the colors) –https://usabilla.com/blog/how-to-design-for-color-blindness/
  • If in doubt – don’t use it.
  • Presentations should be accessible to a broad audience.
  • Text must be of a reasonable size (suggest 24 point), in a clear, easily legible font.
  • Figures must have legible axis and color scheme.

The Call for Oral Presentations is now closed.

*********************************************************************

Welcome to the 3rd International Smoke Symposium (ISS3) Call for Presentation Proposals. Building on the previous two successful editions, this symposium is a venue and international nexus for sharing the latest developments in research, management, and policy around the important topic of smoke from wildfires, rangeland fires, and prescribed burns.

This symposium is targeted towards researchers and practitioners with expertise in a range of wildland fire smoke topic areas including: air quality monitoring and/ or regulation, land management, fire responders, extension mechanisms, public health, fire weather, climate change and forecasting, among others.

Using a unified track to enable full participation and maximize engagement, ISS3 will have presentations delivered from both Raleigh, North Carolina and from the University of California Davis. This climate-friendly conference format will ensure broad audience participation and access to world-renown wildland fire smoke experts.

Presentations will be live-streamed, professionally videotaped, and made available through the symposium website for at least a year. ISS1 and ISS2 set a very high standard for successful and fully interactive virtual capability. Our goal is that, in addition to providing training and education, ISS3 will enable a global conversation that facilitates knowledge sharing among the variety of experts in geographical, topical, and practice-specific facets of wildland fire smoke.

Participants will discuss how the state-of-the-science is evolving, including the latest advances. We will explore how scientific information is being put to practical use in the field and utilized in improved public policy, as well as the limits of our current understanding.

We are seeking Oral Presentations and Poster Presentations for both the Raleigh and Davis venues on topics listed below. In addition to a full suite of scientific talks, ISS3 will debut a feature set of Ignite Talks aimed at a broader audience and made available via the web.

PUBLICATIONS: All authors will be invited to submit an extended abstract or full paper to the Symposium Proceedings, as well as to Special Issues in multiple Scientific Journals.

IGNITE TALKS:

  • Talks of broad interest across any or all of the session topics below.

ORAL AND POSTER PRESENTATIONS:

Observations

  • Smoke Chemistry and Measurement
  • Emerging Air Quality Sensors, Networks and Real-time Information
  • Smoke Modeling
  • Dispersion and Transport Modeling
  • Air Quality Models for Smoke
  • Data Fusion Techniques, Applications

Climate Change

  • Climate Modeling
  • Climate Change Impacts on Smoke
  • Smoke Impacts on Climate

Emissions

  • Fire Activity, Emissions Factors, and Emission Inventories
  • Smoke from Biomass and Human Structures

Health Impacts

  • Estimating Individual and Population Smoke Exposure
  • Wildland/Bushfire Fire Personnel Exposure
  • Public Health Impacts of Smoke (e.g., respiratory, cardiovascular, mental health)
  • Public Health Interventions for Smoke
  • Occupational Health (e.g., Wildland Firefighters, outdoor workers)
  • Smoke Hazard Warning and Monitoring Systems

Other Impacts

  • Communicating Smoke Impacts
  • Economic Impacts of Smoke
  • Ecological Impacts of Smoke

Smoke Management

  • Remote Sensing and Tools for Smoke Management
  • Smoke Management and Mitigation
  • Smoke Ready Community Efforts
  • Short/Long Term Tradeoffs Between Rx Fire & Wildfire/Bushfire
  • Global Fire Smoke Issues
  • Differences Between Prescribed Fire & Wildfire/Bushfire in Smoke

Presentation Types:

ORAL PRESENTATION: [12 minutes + 3 minutes for Q&A]. These presentations will be grouped with presentations of similar topic and we may organize a panel discussion or additional Q&A time at the end of the session.

POSTER PRESENTATION: Will be presented during a designated session, presenters are required to be present during the session.

IGNITE TALK: ISS3 will debut a feature set of Ignite Talks aimed at a broader audience (i.e. media and general public). Short format talks with a strict 5-minute limit and a maximum of 20 slides.

SPECIAL SESSION: 2 hours each, we will have limited space for special sessions however we encourage focus on recent scientific field campaigns such as FASMEE, WE-CAN and FIREX-AQ. You will submit an overview of the Special Sessions with a list of presentations within the session.  After accepted each session within the Special Session will be required to submit an abstract.

When submitting proposals, you will have the opportunity to select the location in which you plan to attend. We have selected two locations and the hybrid conference to accommodate as many people as possible. We acknowledge travel limitations, restrictions and constraints due to budgets, bans and environmental choices.

ISS3 will have one program schedule where all presentations will be professionally video taped and live streamed to both locations, and to the remote audience. Raleigh, NC will be the larger venue with up to four concurrent sessions, so more presentations will likely be accepted for Raleigh. UC Davis will have concurrent sessions highly focused on Health Impacts, however, only one will be delivered from UC Davis; the additional rooms will be sessions that are being live streamed from Raleigh, NC. Please consider these restrictions when submitting an abstract.

We invite you to sponsor or exhibit at the 3rd International Smoke Symposium ISS3. (Prospectus – PDF)

Online Registration 

Building on the previous two successful editions, this symposium is a venue and international nexus for sharing the latest developments in public health science, ecology of smoke, research, management, and policy around the important topic of smoke from wildfires, rangeland fires, forest fires and prescribed burns.

Virtual Conference/Trade Show
The physical trade show will be at the Raleigh location only, however, we will also be offering a virtual trade show which allows us to expand our attendance and include individuals who cannot travel to the symposium. This will also allow integration of an online learning component, which will support active connection with our audience year-round. Remote participants will be able to view the presentations live and interact with the presenter and Exhibitors.

Online Registration 

 

Thank you to our Sponsors and Partners

Cooperative Partners 
The Fire and Aviation (FA) program is a diverse, professional organization dedicated to providing national direction, leadership, policy, standards, and operational oversight. FA works with state and field offices to ensure a safe, cost effective and efficient fire and aviation management program in support of the national Bureau of Land Management (BLM) mission.

The FA is headquartered at the National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) in Boise, Idaho, where it works with seven other federal agencies to manage wildland fire in the United States. BLM’s fire and aviation program has three organizational levels: 1) the national office provides leadership and oversight, and develops policy, procedures and budgets for the fire and aviation program; 2) state offices are responsible for coordinating policies and interagency activities within their state; and 3) field offices are responsible for on-the-ground fire management and aviation activities, often partnering with other agencies to maximize rapid initial attack.

The BLM, a leader in our nation’s wildland fire management efforts, undertakes a broad range of activities to safely protect the public, the natural landscape, wildlife habitat and recreational areas for our country’s citizens. The program includes fire suppression, preparedness, predictive services, fuels management, fire planning, community assistance and protection, prevention and education, and perhaps most significant, safety. The BLM meets these challenges by fielding highly trained and skilled professional firefighters and managers. Reducing the risk and consequence of wildland fires continues to grow in importance; however, suppression operations and safety continue to be the core of the overall fire program.
The U.S. Forest Service conducts fundamental and applied research in wildland fire. The U.S. Forest Service educates and mentors future fire science managers and provides tours, curriculum, teacher workshops, and presentations to increase the public’s understanding of the science of wildland fire.
Wildland Fire Air Quality Response Program

Recognition of the growing threat that wildfire smoke poses to public health and safety has resulted in a proactive and determined response led by the USDA-Forest Service (USFS) and enhanced through partnership with many other agencies such as the National Park Service. The Wildland Fire Air Quality Response Program (WFAQRP) was created to directly assess, communicate, and address risks posed by wildland fire smoke to the public as well as fire personnel. The program depends on four primary components: specially trained personnel called Air Resource Advisors, air quality monitoring, smoke concentration and dispersion modeling, and coordination and cooperation with agency partners.

Under the WFAQRP, Air Resource Advisors are technical specialists that are trained to work on smoke issues from wildland fire. They are deployed nationwide during large smoke events. Air Resource Advisors are dispatched to an incident to assist with understanding and predicting smoke impacts on the public and fire personnel. They analyze, summarize, and communicate these impacts to incident teams, air quality regulators, and the public.
http://www.firelab.org
http://www.fs.fed.us/pnw/fera
http://www.airfire.org

Partners 
The Smoke Committee (SmoC) provides national leadership in smoke and air resource management pertinent to wildland fire management. The SmoC develops and disseminates strategies and guidance to help member agencies and partners effectively, efficiently, and consistently manage smoke within their fire and fuels programs. The SmoC provides a forum for air resource and wildland fire management leaders to address technical, regulatory and policy issues related to planned and unplanned fire emissions and air quality impacts on firefighter and public safety and health.

Primary objectives include:
Improve communication and understanding of the interface of wildland fire management and air quality.
Develop consistent recommendations for wildland fire management which account for the air quality impacts of planned and unplanned ignition for NWCG member agencies.
For SmoC products, seek consensus and mutual benefit to member agencies and partners when possible, but include full range of discussion and viewpoints if consensus is not achieved.
Assess and advance technical products and training to build wildland fire management field capabilities relative to smoke management. This includes addressing air quality impacts of planned and unplanned ignitions, and meeting environmental rules, regulations, guidelines.
Promote coordination and collaboration between agencies, programs and partners.

https://www.nwcg.gov/committees/smoke-committee
The AQRC provides support for teams of collaborative researchers to conduct scientific, engineering, health, social and economic research that educates and informs planning and regulations for air quality and climate change. The AQRC educates and informs through conferences, outreach, scholarly publications, and training grants.

https://airquality.ucdavis.edu/

@UCDavisAQRC
Diamond Sponsor 
EPA Office of Research and Development: Science at EPA provides the foundation for credible decision-making to safeguard human health and ecosystems from environmental pollutants. The Office of Research and Development (ORD) is the scientific research arm of EPA, whose leading-edge research helps provide the solid underpinning of science and technology for the Agency.
ORD supports six research programs that identify the most pressing environmental health research needs with input from EPA offices, partners and stakeholders. Strategic Research Action Plans outline the research under way in the programs. The research is conducted by ORD’s three national laboratories, four national centers, and two offices located in 14 facilities across the country and in Washington, D.C.

Learn more about EPA research Center for Public Health and Environmental Assessment CPHEA?s Mission: To provide the science needed to understand the complex interrelationship between people and nature in support of assessments and policy to protect human health and ecological integrity.

Platinum Sponsor 
The men and women of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) are dedicated to the fire protection and stewardship of over 31 million acres of California's privately-owned wildlands. In addition, the Department provides varied emergency services in 36 of the State's 58 counties via contracts with local governments. Our mission is to serve and safeguard the people and protect the property and resources of California.
Preventing wildfires in the State Responsibility Area (SRA) is a vital part of CAL FIRE's mission. While these efforts have occurred since the early days of the Department, CAL FIRE has adapted to the evolving destructive wildfires and succeeded in significantly increasing its efforts in fire prevention. The Department's Fire Prevention Program consists of multiple activities including wildland pre-fire engineering, vegetation management, fire planning, education and law enforcement. Typical fire prevention projects include brush clearance, prescribed fire, defensible space inspections, emergency evacuation planning, fire prevention education, fire hazard severity mapping, and fire-related law enforcement activities.
CAL FIRE's mission emphasizes the management and protection of California's natural resources; a goal that is accomplished through ongoing assessment and study of the State's natural resources and an extensive CAL FIRE Resource Management Program. CAL FIRE oversees enforcement of California's forest practice regulations, which guide timber harvesting on private lands. Reviews and inspections ensure protection of watershed and wildlife, as well as renewal of timber resources. Department foresters and fire personnel work closely to encourage and implement fuels management projects to reduce the threat of uncontrolled wildfires. CAL FIRE Foresters promote conservation and the importance of our trees and forests to Californians of all ages.
CAL FIRE manages eight Demonstration State Forests that provide for commercial timber production, public recreation, and research and demonstration of good forest management practices. Additional forestry programs include urban forestry, archaeology, pest management, etc.

https://www.fire.ca.gov/

Gold Sponsor 
The Air Pollution and Respiratory Health Branch of the National Center for Environmental Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) leads CDC’s fight against environmental-related respiratory illnesses, including asthma, and studies indoor and outdoor air pollution.

CDC’s asthma program focuses on three main activities:
1. surveillance: collecting and analyzing data on an ongoing basis to understand when, where, and in whom asthma occurs;
2. implementing scientifically proven interventions: ensuring that scientific information is translated into public health practices and programs to reduce the burden of asthma; and
3. establishing and maintaining partnerships: ensuring that all stakeholders have the opportunity to be involved in developing, implementing, and evaluating local asthma control programs.

This same approach of research-based intervention conducted in partnership with international, national, and local partners is applied to CDC’s work in preventing carbon monoxide poisoning, studying the health effects of exposure to forest fire smoke, and investigating human health effects of poor air quality. CDC works with government and non-governmental agencies and organizations worldwide to conduct research and surveillance and to develop training materials, educational information, and innovative methods to address respiratory health problems associated with air pollution. Through these efforts CDC helps local and state governments and private agencies inform the public about the health effects of air pollution and provides people with accurate and useful information about steps they can take to protect their health.
Silver Sponsors
https://health.ucdavis.edu/medschool/
The Office of Research at UC Davis enables excellence in research, innovation and technology commercialization. We provide services and resources to simulate research, facilitate collaborations, optimize infrastructure, ensure compliance and translate innovations into commercial applications for societal benefit.

https://research.ucdavis.edu

@UCDavisResearch
The Western Center for Agricultural Health and Safety (WCAHS) is one of 11 agricultural health and safety centers in the U.S established by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). Founded in 1990 and located at the University of California, Davis, WCAHS is a multidisciplinary center with a history of engaging agricultural communities in the Western states of Arizona, California, Hawaii, and Nevada through innovative research and outreach.

WCAHS faculty and staff conduct research on high hazard topics, including air quality, ergonomics, dairy pathogens, and heat illness. Through its robust outreach program, WCAHS reaches over 3,000 individuals annually with health and safety trainings, health fairs, and presentations.

More recently, WCAHS collaborated with agricultural stakeholders in California to develop rapid response training materials to assist employers with meeting the requirements of the Cal/OSHA emergency wildfire smoke regulation.

https://aghealth.ucdavis.edu/
The UC Davis Environmental Health Sciences Center (EHSC) is one of more than 20 National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences Core Centers in the United States. EHSC has experts across a range of disciplines.
EHSC fosters interdisciplinary research to understand how environmental factors induce disease or disability and to translate this knowledge into solutions. It provides researchers with opportunities to share cutting-edge technical expertise and laboratories, and with mentoring for faculty at any level who are tackling difficult-to-solve problems in which health is being eroded by environmental exposures. A major goal is to train a new generation of environmental health scientists.
Our ultimate goal is to improve health and reduce health disparities, so understanding the communities most impacted by environmental hazards is central to EHSC’s mission. By working with local groups and agencies, EHSC ensures its science addresses the needs of California’s diverse population.
The Central Valley, a focus of the EHSC, is home to some 4 million people who carry a disproportionate share of air pollution, contaminated water and pesticide applications, and have the least access to health care. More recently, EHSC’s research has expanded to urban areas in California affected by climate change-related wildfires.

https://environmentalhealth.ucdavis.edu/
Bronze Sponsor 
2B Technologies is dedicated to the development and commercialization of new analytical instruments for atmospheric and environmental measurements. We specialize in miniaturized instruments for measurements of ozone (O3), nitric oxide (NO), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), mercury (Hg), and other chemical species in air. Our small, lightweight, low-power instruments are now used for atmospheric measurements using balloons, kites, UAVs, research aircraft, and at many remote sites, including Antarctica, the Galapagos Islands, the Greenland ice sheet, the summit of Mont Blanc, the Amazon rain forest, on buoys in the Arctic Ocean, on commercial airliners, in many U.S. National Parks and at numerous other locations throughout the world.

https://www.twobtech.com/index.html
Exhibitors 
Southern Fire Exchange works with partners throughout the region to connect fire managers and researchers, increase the use of available fire science, and facilitate discussions about the relevance of research results and future research needs. Representing 11 southern states, Southern Fire Exchange is funded by the Joint Fire Science Program and is a member of the Fire Science Exchange Network.

http://southernfireexchange.org/

@SEFireScience

Forest Technology Systems (FTS) is a leading manufacturer of remote environmental monitoring solutions including systems, instrumentation and communications technology for the Hydrology, Fire Weather and Meteorology industries. Our equipment forms the backbone of some of the world’s most sophisticated and demanding environment monitoring networks. Our mission is to make our customers successful in their efforts to monitor, record, and analyze changes in the natural environment.

https://ftsinc.com/


FEDS Protection was founded, in part, as a result of the legal work its President performed in the Thirtymile, Cramer and Esperanza fire tragedies. Tony Vergnetti, esq. understands how stressful any situation regarding a fire tragedy can become and wants you to know that FEDS has your back.

FEDS Protection provides expertise, quality legal representation, and support to the federal wildland firefighting community which begins with education regarding your liability exposures. Testimonials by fellow wildland firefighters who have worked with FEDS Protection provide in-depth and personal accounts in the aftermath of a fire tragedy. For your protection, Federal law requires agencies to reimburse most firefighters up to 50% of the cost of this coverage.

Get your FEDS Protection in place – it takes just 5 minutes.

Call 866.955.FEDS(3337) or visit www.fedsprotection.com. Once enrolled, complete a Request for Reimbursement Form, FS 6500-229.

https://www.fedsprotection.com/

@FEDSprotects

 

Program Schedule

We are pleased to share the detailed program schedule for the ISS3 Virtual Conference. Please note the program will take place on Mountain Daylight Time. (Please check World Clock for time zones)

ISS3 Virtual Conference Program Schedule (as of April 19) (PDF)

ISS3 Program Schedule and Abstracts (PDF)

If you have any questions, please just let us know. Email or Phone 406-625-7059

KEYNOTE PRESENTATION: Michael Kodas, Author, Photojournalist, Editor and Educator
Michael Kodas is a Pulitzer Prize-winning photojournalist, author, editor and educator and a Senior Editor at InsideClimate News. He won the 2018 Colorado Book Award for General Nonfiction for his book, Megafire: The Race to Extinguish a Deadly Epidemic of Flame, which was also named one of the 20 best nonfiction books of 2017 by Amazon. He is also the author of High Crimes: The Fate of Everest in an Age of Greed, which was named Best Non-Fiction in USA Book News’ National Best Books Awards of 2008 and was the subject of a question on the game show Jeopardy. His photography was featured in the Ken Burns/Lynn Novick documentary The Vietnam War and he has appeared on the HBO program Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, in the American Experience documentary The Big Burn on PBS and in the Emmy Award-winning documentary The Fire Line. His stories have appeared in the New York Times, The Washington Post, Newsweek, and dozens of other publications. He was part of the team at The Hartford Courant awarded The Pulitzer Prize for breaking news coverage in 1999 and has been honored with awards from many other professional organizations.

KEYNOTE PANEL: Federal Leadership on Wildland Fire Smoke
Moderator: Peter Lahm, Air Resource Specialist, USDA Forest Service
Patrick Breysse, PhD, Director, National Center for Environmental Health, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Susan Combs, Assistant Secretary of Policy, Management and Budget, U.S. Department of the Interior
Anne Idsal, Principal Deputy Assistant Administrator, Office of Air and Radiation, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
James Hubbard, Under Secretary, Natural Resources and the Environment, U.S. Department of Agriculture

Peter Lahm, is the Air Resource Specialist for the USDA Forest Service, State and Private Forestry, Fire and Aviation Management, in Washington, DC. He leads the Wildland Fire Air Quality Response Program which provides personnel, technical specialists called Air Resource Advisors, smoke modeling and monitoring capabilities to develop forecasts for areas adversely affected by smoke. Starting in 2004, Pete has led the Forest Service’s national smoke management efforts developing technical approaches and policies related to smoke impacts from prescribed fire and wildfires. Since 2006 he has chaired the National Wildfire Coordinating Group’s Smoke Committee.

 

 

James E. Hubbard
Jim Hubbard was sworn into office as Under Secretary for Natural Resources and Environment at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, September 6, 2018. In this role, he oversees the work of the USDA Forest Service.

In 2016 he retired from the U.S. Forest Service as Deputy Chief for State and Private Forestry, with responsibility for Fire and Aviation Management, National Fire Plan, Cooperative Forestry Programs, Forest Health Protection, Conservation Education, Urban and Community Forestry, and the Office of Tribal Relations.

Between November 2004 and October 2005, Hubbard served as the Director of the Office of Wildland Fire Coordination with the Department of the Interior. In this position he had oversight for the implementation of the National Fire Plan and activities of the five land managing bureaus for forest fire prevention, mitigation, and partnerships with communities, tribes, and stakeholders.

Hubbard was a member of the Colorado Forest Service for over 34 years before coming to Federal Service in 2004. He served as Colorado State Forester from 1984-2004. Jim was a leader in the National Association of State Foresters (NASF) and Chaired the Council of Western State Foresters. He provided national leadership in the NASF through his many committee assignments, including the Chairman of the Legislative Committee. Jim served as Liaison to the Western Governor’s Association during the development of the implementation strategy for the National Fire Plan.

He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Forest Management from Colorado State University and is an Honor Alum of the College of Natural Resources. Jim grew up in Neodesha, rural Kansas where he enjoyed being in the woods, exploring new territory, and working the land. He and his wife Cindy have three grown daughters.

Susan Combs, Assistant Secretary for Policy, Management and Budget, oversees budget, policy development, human resources, information technology, acquisition, emergency response and a variety of other mission essential functions at the Department of the Interior. In this role, she leads the Department of the Interior’s modernization and reorganization initiatives to better align bureau efforts, and improve stewardship of DOI’s fiscal resources. In her role as Assistant Secretary for Policy, Management and Budget, she also serves as DOI’s Chief Financial Officer, Chief Acquisition Officer and Chief Performance Officer.

Ms. Combs has an extensive public service career. She previously served in the Texas Legislature, writing and passing the state’s private property legislation, and working to ensure greater transparency in government spending. In her 16 years as a statewide elected official, she served as the state’s first female Agriculture Commissioner and then as the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts/Treasurer and Chief Financial Officer. In these positions, she provided strategic and innovative management, efficient fiscal and operational oversight, successful implementation of practical public-private partnerships, and delivered efficient and effective services to the public, which earned her numerous awards.

Patrick Breysse, PhD, joined CDC in December 2014 as the Director of NCEH/ATSDR. Dr. Breysse leads CDC’s efforts to investigate the relationship between environmental factors and health. He came to CDC from the Johns Hopkins University where his research focused on the evaluation and control of chemical, biological, and physical factors that can affect health, with a particular concentration on risk and exposure assessment. Under Dr. Breysse’s leadership, the agency has prioritized work on exposure to lead, safe drinking water, initiated new ATSDR actions to address exposure to hazardous chemicals, and has played a critical role in CDC’s emergency preparedness and response to natural disasters and chemical exposures.

Dr. Breysse received his PhD in Environmental Health Engineering from Johns Hopkins University in 1985 and completed postdoctoral training at the British Institute for Occupational Medicine in Edinburgh, Scotland.

 

 

USEPA photo by Eric Vance

Anne Idsal, Principal Deputy Assistant Administrator, OAR, Environmental Protection Agency
Anne Idsal is the Principal Deputy Assistant Administrator for the Office of Air and Radiation (OAR).  Before leading OAR, she served as EPA’s Region 6 Administrator.  Prior to joining EPA, Anne spent her career working for Texas state government and helped shape environmental policy for the state.

Anne’s state experience includes service as the general counsel for the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. She then served as the first female Chief Clerk and Deputy Land Commissioner for the Texas General Land Office.

 

 

 

 

 

KEYNOTE PANEL: COVID-19 and Wildfire Smoke
Moderator: Peter Lahm, Air Resource Specialist, USDA Forest Service
Sarah B. Henderson, PhD, Associate Professor (Partner), Senior Scientist, Environmental Health Services, BC Centre for Disease Control, Occupational and Environmental Health (OEH), The University of British Columbia
Wayne E. Cascio, M.D., FACC, FAHA, Director, Center for Public Health and Environmental Assessment, Office of Research and Development, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
John Balmes, MD, Professor, University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine
George L Geissler, State Forester, Deputy Supervisor of Wildland Fire and Forest Health/Resiliency, Washington Department of Natural Resources

Sarah B. Henderson, As the Senior Environmental Health Scientist at the British Columbia Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC), I lead a program of applied research and surveillance to support evidence-based policy for the province.

This role requires me to be a generalist rather than a specialist, and my work spans a wide range of topics including: air pollution from all provincially relevant sources (wildfire smoke, residential woodsmoke, industry, road dust, shipping, and vehicles); extreme weather events; radon gas; food safety; water quality; and exposures managed by the Drug and Poison Information Centre (DPIC). Most of my work requires the collection, processing, integration, analysis, and communication of health and environmental data, for which I am a proficient and enthusiastic R user.

Wayne E. Cascio, Over 24 years in academia at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and East Carolina University, he engaged in clinical, research, teaching, and healthcare administrative activities. Prior to joining the EPA in 2011, Dr. Cascio worked to increase access to cardiovascular health care in underserved rural areas, and served on EPA’s Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee for Particulate Matter. While at the U.S. EPA Wayne has helped focus research activities of the Office of Research and Development on public health relevant products. He has served as a leader in the Agency’s research and public health guidance on the topic of wildfire smoke and health, and is a co-author of the 2016 Wildfire Smoke: Guide for Public Health Officials.  Dr. Cascio has authored or co-authored more than 200 journal articles and book chapters. He is a recipient of a 2013 EPA Gold Medal for Exceptional Service, a 2013 Office of Research and Development Impact Award, APHA’s 2018 Homer N. Calver Award, and numerous Scientific and Technological Achievement Awards. Current research includes the study of the health effects of environmental pollutants informing risk assessment, risk-management decisions, and improvement of public health and quality of life through increased environmental health communication and literacy. Dr. Cascio earned a B.A. from Johns Hopkins University and an M.D. from the University of Maryland. He completed clinical training in internal medicine, and cardiovascular diseases at the University of North Carolina and post-doctoral training in electrophysiology at the Physiologisches Institut, Universität Bern, Switzerland. Dr. Cascio is a clinician-scientist and is board certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine in Internal Medicine and Cardiovascular Diseases.

Dr. Balmes received his MD degree from Mount Sinai School of Medicine in 1976. After internal medicine training at Mount Sinai and pulmonary subspecialty, occupational medicine, and research training at Yale, he joined the faculty of USC in 1982. He joined the faculty at UCSF in 1986 and is currently Professor in the Divisions of Occupational and Environmental Medicine and Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital (ZSFG). His major academic activities include several collaborative epidemiological research projects, various advisory and editorial committees, Director of the UC Berkeley-UCSF Joint Medical Program, Director of the Northern California Center for Occupational and Environmental Health (a consortium of programs at UC Berkeley, UC Davis, and UCSF). Since 2008 he has been the Physician Member of the California Air Resources Board.

 

State Forester George Geissler joined the Washington Department of Natural Resources in 2018, after 30 years of public and private forestry, and wildland firefighting experience. In Washington, he’s leading agency’s efforts in wildland fire management and forest health and resiliency.

George holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Louisiana State University and a Master of Business Administration from Harvard. He is also a Society of American Foresters Certified Forester.

Prior to joining DNR, he served eight years as Oklahoma State Forester and Director of the Oklahoma Forest Service. He served as the agency’s Forest Management Chief before advancing to the director position where he coordinated the department’s forest management and Cooperative Forestry programs, nursery and genetics programs and prescribed fire.

Prior to joining OFS he established and managed a successful natural resource management firm for eight prior to its sale. George also has experience as the Corporate Forester and Operations Manager for Central and Southwest Services, an investor owned utility holding company with transmission and distribution operations in the south-central US, London and Brazil.

George has also served with the U.S. Forest Service, as a silviculturalist in Idaho based on the Boise National Forest and was a member of the Boise Hot Shots for six years. George is a past president of the Southern Group of State Foresters and is the immediate past president of the National Association of State Foresters having served on that organization’s executive committee for the past 5 years. He also served as a member of the Wildland Fire Leadership Council (where he represented the National Governors Association) and is incoming Chair of the NASF Wildland Fire Management Committee.

 

KEYNOTE PANEL SESSION: Building Coalitions and Enhancing Communication Among Stakeholder Communities  Panel
Beverly Banister, Deputy Regional Administrator, EPA Region 4, Facilitator
Marcy Ballman, Division Director, Health Promotions, American Lung Association
Darryl Jones, Forest Protection Chief for South Carolina Forestry Commission
Jennifer Montgomery, Director, Governor’s Forest Management Task Force
Douglas Watson, Chief, Air Monitoring and Planning Section Meteorologist, KDHE-BOA

Beverly H. Banister is the Deputy Regional Administrator for the EPA’s Southeast Region (Region 4). In this capacity, she provides leadership on the implementation and direction of Region 4 programs across the eight southeastern states of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, Mississippi, South Carolina and Tennessee, as well as six federally-recognized tribes. Prior to assuming this position, Ms. Banister served as the Director of the Air, Pesticides and Toxics Management Division in Region 4. In this role, she was responsible for planning, coordinating, and implementing all air, pesticides, and toxics programs throughout the region. In her over 36 years of environmental experience, Ms. Banister has provided management and leadership to both the Waste and Water Divisions in Region 4, as well as EPA Headquarters. Ms. Banister is a graduate of Auburn University with a degree in Chemical Engineering. She is an Alabama native and lives in the Atlanta area.

Marcy Ballman, PhD, received her doctorate in Toxicology from the University of Montana working to improve the quality of life of asthmatic children living in homes with wood stoves. This work led to projects around wildfire smoke exposure mitigation for people with lung disease in her current role as Division Director for the American Lung Association. During the catastrophic 2017 wildfire season in western Montana, she organized and distributed 160 air filter units to 10 elementary schools in the hardest hit communities. The team travelled over 600 miles in 48 hours to provide relief for rural children and clean air in their classrooms. Since then, she has worked to proactively prepare communities for wildfire smoke inundation while still providing disaster relief assistance when needed.

 

Darryl Jones is the Forest Protection Chief for the South Carolina Forestry Commission. His responsibilities include oversight of wildfire suppression, fire prevention, emergency response, law enforcement, forest health, training & safety, and administration of South Carolina’s Certified Prescribed Fire Manager, Smoke Management, and prescribed burning programs.

Darryl is a Wildland Firefighter, Certified Prescribed Fire Manager, and a Registered Forester, as well as a past president and current steering committee member of the SC Prescribed Fire Council. He holds a B.S. degree in Forest Resource Management from Clemson University.

 

 

Jennifer Montgomery has been the Director of the Governor’s Forest Management Task Force since April of 2019. She ran for Placer County Supervisor in 2008 and was elected to three terms.

She attended Mills College from 1979-1983 and graduated with honors and Phi Beta Kappa membership, with a BA in Communications. She has worked at a variety of jobs including at Bank of America, the Sierra Business Council, Sugar Bowl Ski Resort, and ran her own business for 8 years. And she served as a volunteer firefighter for 2 years.

 

 

Doug Watson received his degree in Meteorology from the University of Kansas.

Doug has been employed as an Environmental Scientist/Meteorologist in the Bureau of Air of the Kansas Department of Health and Environment since March 1999. He is the Chief of the Air Monitoring and Planning Section. He has been heavily involved in the atmospheric modeling and planning areas of ozone, particulate matter and regional haze in the state of Kansas.

Since 2003, Doug has been working with the agricultural interests in the State of Kansas to educate and inform them of the downwind impacts of the burning in the Flint Hills. He was also heavily involved in the development of the Kansas Flint Hills Smoke Management Plan.

 

 

KEYNOTE PANEL SESSION: Uncharted Fire & Smoke Extremes in Australia: Rapid Responses and What We Learned
Monica Long, Meteorologist, Bureau of Meteorology, Australia, Moderator
Dr. Martin Cope, Australian Commonwealth Science and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), Principal Research Scientist
Fay Johnston, Associate Professor, Public Health and Primary Care, University of Tasmania
Mike Fromm, Meteorologist, United States Naval Research Lab

Monica Long is a meteorologist with a background in fire weather operations. From 2010 she developed and delivered the national Fire Weather Training and Assessment Program for the Australian Bureau of Meteorology. Since 2016 she has worked closely with fire agencies, environmental protection agencies and health departments around Australia to lead improvements to the Bureau’s fire weather and heatwave services, including the smoke and air quality forecasting capability.

 

 

 

 

Dr. Martin Cope has worked in the area of air quality modelling and applications for over 30 years. He has been employed by the Australian Commonwealth Science and Industrial Research Organisation as a Principal Research Scientist for the last 20 years. Martin’s research is focused on the atmospheric sources, wind-borne transport, chemical reaction, and population exposure of fine particles. Most recently, he has been contributing to the development of a short-term (24-72 hour) smoke forecasting system, which is now run operationally by the Bureau of Meteorology for the Australian region.

 

 

Prof. Fay Johnston is a physician and environmental epidemiologist working in the government and academic sectors. Her research program focusses on environmental determinants of health and their implications for public health policy and practice, with a major focus on managing  the community impacts of smoke from wildfires.  In 2016 she led the development a novel pollen, smoke and health monitoring system, AirRater, which was rapidly deployed across the country during Australia’s summer bushfire crisis.

 

 

Dr. Michael Fromm is a research meteorologist in the Remote Sensing Division of the Naval Research Laboratory. At NRL since 1993, his area of focus is in atmospheric aerosols and clouds in the troposphere and stratosphere. He is the lead NRL researcher in the discovery of biomass burning emissions injected into the stratosphere from super-intense forest fires via pyrocumulonimbus (http://glossary.ametsoc.org/wiki/Pyrocumulonimbus), and is founder/moderator of an email discussion group on that topic. Dr. Fromm makes synergistic use of groundbased data (such as aerosol lidar and Doppler radar) and satellite nadir/limb measurements for multi-spectral characterization of pyroCbs, volcanic plumes, and various forms of aerosol-polluted ice clouds.   Using NASA and NRL satellite limb-sounding data, he created a publically available two-decade climatology and database of polar stratospheric cloud observations. He is lead author of 16 refereed journal articles and co-author of 61. He participated in the International Polar Year, POLARCAT (Polar Study using Aircraft, Remote Sensing, Surface Measurements and Models, of Climate, Chemistry, Aerosols, and Transport), and NASA’s ARCTAS (Arctic Research of the Composition of the Troposphere from Aircraft and Satellites) measurement campaign in boreal summer 2008 studying pollutant transport into the Arctic. He is a member of AGU, AMS, and the Solar Occultation Satellite Science Team.

KEYNOTE PANEL: Wildfire Smoke and Health Effects
Moderator, Jason Vargo, Lead Scientist – Climate Change and Health Equity, California Department of Public Health and Mary Clare Hano, Applied Social Scientist, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development
Kat Navarro, Research Industrial Hygienist, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
Sheryl Magzamen, Assistant Professor, Epidemiology, Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences, Colorado State University
Ana Rappold, Statistician, Environmental Public Health Division of the National Health and Environmental Effects Research Lab, Environmental Protection Agency

Jason Vargo is a scientist with the California Department of Public Health focused on climate change and health equity. He will moderate the panel and begin by giving a few examples of how the science around wildfire smoke is being translated into policy in California.

 

 

 

 

Mary Clare Hano is an applied social scientist with U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development – where she is a member of the Smoke Sense research team. With a background in public health and public administration, her work focuses on translational efforts to affect change in complex social problems.

 

 

 

 

Kathleen Navarro is a research industrial hygienist at the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). Her research focuses on characterizing firefighter’s exposure to chemicals from smoke, understand pathways of exposures, and developing practices to reduce exposure. Previously, she worked for the US Forest Service and conducting research on wildland firefighter exposure to smoke.

 

 

 

 

Sheryl Magzamen is an Associate Professor of Epidemiology at Colorado State University. Her research focuses on environmental and social determinants of chronic respiratory disease with particular attention to low resource communities. Since arriving at CSU in 2013, she has been fortunate to collaborate with atmospheric scientists, engineers and industrial hygienists to understand health effects of biogenic exposures on respiratory health, including wildfire smoke.

 

 

Dr. Ana Rappold is a Statistician with EPA’s Office of Research and Development. She is a scientific lead of the project aimed to integrate public health messaging with environmental models and understanding their effectiveness to reduce burden in population. She has conducted a number of clinical and epidemiological research studies of health effects from air pollution and has authored a number of studies specific to smoke impacts on health. Dr. Rappold’s major contributions toward advancement of this scientific field have been in adopting and developing innovative statistical methods to demonstrate associations between air pollution and health outcomes, understanding differential impacts of intrinsic and extrinsic risk factors on these associations, and in adopting principles from social science, economics and behavioral economics to provide groundbreaking, solutions-based research.

 

 

THE FIELD TRIPS HAVE BEEN CANCELLED

Field Trip 1: Prescribed Fire Smoke Management and Monitoring in NC
Time: 10:00 – 4:30
Price: $45 (includes transportation, lunch, snacks)
Hard hat and fire shirts are required. If you are able to bring your own that is preferred, we will have some available for those not able to provide their own.

Participates will travel to Stan Adams Training Center for a Welcome and History of Prescribed Fire around Jordan Lake by Kevin Harvell, NC Forest Service – Region Two Forester
They will then observe the Go or No – Go Decision for a Growing Season Burn at Jordan Lake utilizing Atmospheric Dispersion Models. These are key NC Smoke Management Program decision support tools. They will then rotate between three stations for demos and presentations.

FIRST STATION
RAWS Station
After Burn

SECOND STATION
NC Online Weather Tools
Atmospheric Dispersion Modeling

THIRD STATION
Environmental Beta Attenuation Mass Monitors(EBAMS)

 

Field Trip 2: EPA’s Wildfire Research in Action – Choose Between Two Tours at EPA’s Local Research Facilities
Time: 7:45 am-12:30 pm
Price: $35 (DISCLAIMER: These fees are not collected by USEPA. IAWF will collect and use these funds to provide transportation and snacks)

Registration is open to all ISS3 attendees and will close on April 3, 2020. Space is limited so register today!

Take advantage of ISS3’s location in North Carolina by touring one of the two local US EPA’s Office of Research and Development facilities. Register for a tour either at the Chapel Hill Facility or the Research Triangle Park Facility.

Which tour should you choose?

Research Facility at Chapel Hill: This tour departs the conference hotel at 7:45 am. Upon arrival, you will be taken on a tour of the state-of-the-art chambers used in various clinical studies to understand how the inhalation of various pollutants, including smoke from burning biomass, impacts human health. The studies performed in this facility are critical to linking toxicology and emissions information with patterns seen in epidemiological studies. This tour will end at approximately 12:00 pm.

Research Campus at Research Triangle Park: This tour will depart the conference hotel at 8:00 am. Upon arrival, you will visit several laboratories where researchers are studying wildfire smoke. Research being conducted includes emissions characterization, toxicological impacts, measurements, modeling and the efficacy of health protective actions. This tour will end at approximately 12:30 pm.

To accommodate Friday afternoon flights, the vehicles transporting you to these facilities will allow you to bring your luggage with you, and will stop at Raleigh-Durham Airport on the way back to the conference hotel.

Workshops

The workshops will take place on Monday, April 20, the day preceding the 3rd International Smoke Symposium (ISS3).

The purpose of the workshops is to provide a forum for researchers and practitioners in wildland fire, smoke management, public health, and air quality management to discuss and exchange interests on defined topics. We view these workshops as an opportunity for knowledge and technology transfer.

Registration for the workshops is $20 for half day and $40 for full day.

8:30-12:30
Confirmed for Virtual Conference
Community Innovation: Learning from Leaders to Protect Health from Smoke
Presenters: Invited experts from smoke affected communities
Instructors: Christina Baghdikian, US EPA Office of Research and Development
Susan Lyon Stone, Senior Environmental Health Scientist, EPA’s Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards
Mary Clare Hano, Social Scientist, U.S. EPA’s Office of Research and Development
Ana Rappold, Statistician, EPA’s Office of Research and Development
Sara Terry, Senior Policy Advisor, EPA’s Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards

Are you a leader charged to increase preparedness and response to smoke in your community? We’d like to hear from you!
Wildfire smoke is impacting communities across the country in a more intense, more frequent pattern. When a community faces significant smoke intrusion, the individuals responsible for coordinating wildfire smoke response often have various other full-time environmental public health roles in their community. This workshop is designed around “lightning talks” from practitioners on-the-ground who will share with attendees what they are doing to deal with wildfire smoke, what they have learned, and what needs still exist. The workshop will: increase awareness of available resources for communities to prepare for wildfire smoke; offer an opportunity to provide facilitated input on knowledge and resource gaps that communities need; and outline EPA plans to enhance the Smoke Ready Community framework and research the effectiveness of that framework to build community capacity.

8:30-12:30
Confirmed for Virtual Conference
Smoke Modeling from Forest to Plume: Integrated Modeling Workshop for Smoke Management
Instructors:
Susan Prichard, University of Washington,
Susan O’Neill, USDA Forest Service
Roger Ottmar, USDA Forest Service,
Jim Cronan, USDA Forest Service,
Janice Peterson, USDA Forest Service,
Anne Andreu, University of Washington,
Paige Eagle University of Washington,
Marlin Martinez, University of Washington

Smoke emissions from prescribed fires and wildfires are dependent on a number of variables including area burned, pre-burn fuel loading and arrangement, fuel consumption, fire behavior and plume dynamics. Dispersion and concentrations of the smoke from prescribed burns depends on the rate of emissions and heat release, weather and terrain. Each of these variables in predicted emissions is associated with uncertainty, and of these, estimating fuel consumed within burned areas has the potential for particularly high error propagation in estimated emissions. In addition to errors in quantifying or estimating total fuel consumption, determining the amount and type of fuel consumed in flaming, smoldering and long-term smoldering is critical for predicting downwind smoke impacts such as nighttime inversions and intrusions into communities. Finally, the selection of meteorological domain is critical in dispersing smoke downwind, as well as how emissions are input into the meteorological system via plume rise and vertical allocation underneath plume rise.

In this workshop, we will offer training on a suite of applications addressing these topics, giving participants a hands-on experience with each. 1) The Fuel and Fire Tools (FFT) application to model fuel characterization, consumption, emissions and fire behavior of wildland fuels. 2) The BlueSky Playground to estimate smoke production and dispersion. 3) We will also introduce the new Smoke Emissions Repository Application (SERA), a central repository of wildland fire emissions factors and discuss implications of how the latest emissions factors for criteria air pollutants such as PM2.5 may impact smoke management decisions. 4) Finally, participants will get hands-on training with the monitoring data webtool that gives single click access to measured near-surface particulate matter data (e.g. PM2.5) from permanent monitors and temporary monitors deployed specifically for prescribed fires and wildfires.

8:30-12:30
Confirmed for Virtual Conference
Incorporating Smoke Impacts into Air Quality Forecasting
Instructors: Patrick Zahn, Lead Air Quality Forecaster, Sonoma Technology, Inc
Marcus Hylton, Air Quality Forecaster, Sonoma Technology, Inc
Jeff Beamish, Air Quality Forecaster, Sonoma Technology, Inc
ShihMing Huang, Air Quality Scientist, Sonoma Technology, Inc

Air quality impacts from wildfires, prescribed burns, and agricultural burns have become an increasing concern for air quality forecasters, and smoke impacts present a particular challenge when trying to deliver accurate, timely forecasts. In this workshop, meteorologists and air quality forecasters from Sonoma Technology discuss practical approaches to incorporating smoke impacts into daily ozone and PM2.5 forecasts. We share tools and techniques to predict smoke-enhanced air pollution, including trajectory analyses, satellite imagery, and air quality forecasting models. We also present case study examples of smoke impacts from local fires, as well as long-range smoke transport leading to exceptional air quality events. In particular, we discuss localized burning in the Imperial Valley in southern California, prescribed burn impacts in the Flint Hills region of Kansas, smoke impacts on ozone in Louisiana, impacts from recent fires in northern California, and long-range smoke transport into Ohio. Additionally, we discuss challenges in communicating smoke impacts to air quality agencies and the public, using examples from residential wood burning and prescribed burn decision support systems.

1:30-5:30
Confirmed for Virtual Conference
New Generation Satellite Products for Operational Fire and Smoke Applications
Instructors:  Amy K. Huff, Senior Research Scientist, IMSG at NOAA/NESDIS/STAR
Shobha Kondragunta, NOAA/NESDIS/STAR

In this half-day workshop, participants will learn how to utilize the new generation of geostationary and polar-orbiting satellite products to forecast, monitor, and track the impacts of wildland fires and smoke.  The polar-orbiting satellites SNPP, NOAA-20, and S5P and the geostationary satellites GOES-16 and GOES-17 are providing revolutionary observations of fires, aerosols, and trace gases with unprecedented resolution and accuracy.  Through case study examples, participants will become familiar with the relevant satellite products for fires and smoke, including color imagery, aerosol optical depth (AOD), aerosol detection, fire characterization, carbon monoxide (CO), and nitrogen dioxide (NO2).  Topics will include the status and specifications of the available products, accessing near real-time imagery from NOAA’s AerosolWatch and JSTAR Mapper websites, and interpreting data and imagery with a focus on air quality and visibility.

1:30-5:30
Confirmed for Virtual Conference
Wildfire Detection and Dispatch – Case Studies and Enabling Technologies
Instructor: Gavin Hough, Developer and Founder – EnviroVision Solutions Inc.

By using remote access to operational detection centres, several case studies demonstrating detection examples and key design concepts will be explained. Machine learning, and other vision system concepts will be detailed in such a way as to provide improved spatial and situational awareness. The user experience for operators and dispatch managers will be shared and user feedback outlined.

The impact of multispectral imaging on detection range and sensitivity will be shown using test fires and extensive vegetation fire data. Work flow for system operator and monitoring fires from ignition to several days after the wildfire being extinguished to check for holdover fires will be shown.

Integrating early detection with rapid response will be showcased for active wildfires using web based dispatch, mobile applications and specific workstations for wide area geo-referenced surveillance systems.

THE FOLLOWING WORKSHOPS HAVE BEEN CANCELLED

CANCELLED Exploring the Impacts of Wildfire Smoke on Northern California’s Diverse Populations
Instructors: Dr. Kathryn C. Conlon, University of California Davis, School of Medicine, Department of Public Health Sciences
Dr. Irva Hertz-Picciotto, University of California Davis, School of Medicine, Department of Public Health Sciences
Heather E. Riden, University of California Davis Department of Public Health Sciences, Western Center for Agricultural Health and Safety
Dr. Rebecca J. Schmidt, University of California Davis, School of Medicine Public Health Sciences
Dr. Bryn E. Willson, University of California Davis, Health, Obstetrics and Gynecology Residency Program

This workshop will be a series of in-depth explorations of current research into the health impacts of northern California’s populations, including pregnant women, children, and farmworkers. Presenters will provide details into the study design, participant recruitment, data collection, measurement selection, data analysis, and more. A facilitated discussion will delve into the complex nature of wildfire smoke, including the recurring nature of these events and the difficulties that accompany studying the physical, mental, and emotional impacts.

CANCELLED Smoke and Health Research: The Years Ahead
Instructors:  Sarah Henderson, Senior Scientist, BC Centre for Disease Control
Wayne Cascio, US Environmental Protection Agency
Fay Johnston, University of Tasmania
Ana Rappold, US Environmental Protection Agency
Bonne Ford, Colorado State University
Ian Gilmour, US Environmental Protection Agency

The objective of this workshop is to develop a consensus on the most pressing research gaps related to wildfire smoke, exposure assessment, and health effects. During the morning session, each of the instructors will give a 20-minute presentation on where they feel the science needs to go over the next 5-10 years. This is NOT a review of work that has already been done but brainstorming around the questions we most urgently need to answer in the years ahead. All of the instructors have been working in the field of wildfire smoke and health for several years and have published multiple peer-reviewed papers on the topic, which gives them important insight into the past, present, and future research areas. During the afternoon session, the instructors and participants will decide on 2-4 research topics based on the morning presentations and will break into collaborative groups to workshop study designs and protocols for upcoming funding opportunities. This workshop will allow new investigators in wildfire smoke and health to work with established investigators, thereby growing research capacity and opportunities for funding success.

CANCELLED Tools and Methods Used to Measure Exposure to Wild Fire Chemicals
Instructors: Ameer Taha, Associate Professor, University of California Davis
Cristina Davis, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, UC Davis
Sean M Raffuse, Air Quality Research Center, UC Davis
Tony Wexler, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, UC Davis

Wild fires release volatile combustion chemicals into the environment. The nature of these compounds, their distribution and health effects is of great concern, particularly for urban fires, which produce combustion volatiles from house-hold chemicals. This workshop will address the challenges of measuring and tracking the distribution of these chemicals in the environment, and explore new technologies that capture them. Understanding innovative ways to track exposure to fire chemicals will serve the broad goal of assessing their long-term health effects, in view of the growing threats of climate change and increase in wild-fire frequencies.

CANCELLED Federal Partners Meeting (no charge)

This meeting of Federal government departments and agencies is designed to enhance collaboration around wildland fire smoke related activities.

Bringing together perspectives from the health, technology, emergency response, and preparedness disciplines, the meeting will focus on several aspects of the wildland fire smoke challenge.

Specific topics for discussion will include: how can Federal partners best collaborate and contribute to community smoke preparedness; how to improve communications before, during and after smoke events; and how to coordinate efforts around improving the understanding of health impacts associated with wildland fires.

The agenda is being designed to share information among participating organizations and identify key next steps to improving multi-agency smoke-related efforts. Federal registrants will receive meeting details and preparation materials after they register. For more information contact Sara Terry at [email protected].

The “in-person” portion of ISS3 has been cancelled.  Join us on the Virtual Conference!

Sheraton Raleigh Hotel
421 South Salisbury Street
Raleigh, NC 27601
Webpage

Accommodations
We have reserved a block of rooms at the Federal Per Diem of $120 + Tax, you can make your reservations online through this link.
Book your room at the group rate for ISS3

 

The “in-person” portion of ISS3 has been cancelled.  Join us on the Virtual Conference!

UC Davis Activities Recreation Center (ARC) Conference Center
760 Orchard Road
Davis, CA 95616

Transportation
The Davis Airporter provides transportation to/from Davis and local airports (SMF & SFO) for a set price. Schedule your shuttle ahead of time on the website here.

Traveling by Amtrak? Your final stop will be in Davis (DAV). Purchase your ticket here for $30.

Traveling by car? Review driving directions from the I-80 and I-5.

Parking is available for $10/day in the parking garage across from the Conference Center. Passes are available for purchase at meter boxes around the lot.

UC Davis Campus Map

See what other alternative transportation options the City of Davis offers it’s visitors here.

Bike-Share from Campus to Downtown – Use the local bike-share program provided by JUMP Bikes. Learn about it through our GoClub

The “in-person” portion of ISS3 has been cancelled.  Join us on the Virtual Conference!

We have reserved hotels rooms at 3 different hotels near the Symposium Venue.

UC Davis Hyatt  
173 Old Davis Road Extension
Davis, California, United States, 95616

1.2 mile walk through campus from Hyatt Place to ARC (24 min)
1.5 mile drive around campus from Hyatt Place to ARC (6 min)

The rate is $174/night plus tax. There are a limited number of rooms at the Gov’t rate of $141/night plus tax. Gov’t ID required upon check-in.

To make reservations, guests may call ‪(530) 756-9500‬; mention the group name (Smoke Symposium).

Aggie Inn, Ascend Hotel Collection
245 First Street
Davis, CA 95616

1.1 mile walk through campus from Aggie Inn to ArC (21 min)
2 mile drive around campus from Aggie Inn to ARC (7 min)

Rate is $149/night (limited number of rooms at Federal rate $125/night), Gov’t ID required upon check-in.
Booking link for the non-government rate rooms at Aggie Inn

Booking link for the government rate rooms at Aggie Inn

University Park Inn
1111 Richards Blvd
Davis, CA 95616

1.4 mile walk through campus from University Park Inn & Suites (28 min)
2.3 mile drive around campus from University Park Inn & Suites (9 min)

State rate $95/night
Federal rate $127/night

Guests need to call the hotel directly 530-756-0910 to book.  Ask for the group name (Smoke Symposium) when reserving room.  Gov’t ID required upon check-in.

 

Registration

ONLINE REGISTRATION

Registration is still available for the Virtual Conference.  Registration includes access to all recorded sessions until April 2021.

Virtual Registration – $125

Virtual Student Registration – $55

ONLINE REGISTRATION

Registration Scholarships

We are pleased to offer several registration scholarships to attend ISS3 for free. Scholarship recipients will receive complimentary access to the full Virtual Conference, which includes access to all presentations for up to one year and online interaction to all presenters and attendees during the conference.

We will consider all applications from the larger wildland, prescribed fire, and smoke management communities. Some scholarships are designated for students.

Please complete the form before April 10th. We will notify the recipients by April 16th.

SUBMIT APPLICATION

Questions: Mikel Robinson, [email protected]