Agricultural Supervisors' Perspectives on Occupational Wildfire Smoke Rules.

Abstract

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to 1) explore perceptions of air quality (AQ) monitoring, hazard communication, health impacts of smoke exposure, protective controls and training needs among agricultural supervisors in alignment with the major elements of the wildfire smoke rule, and 2) compare survey responses by the language in which the survey was completed to identify training needs by group.

Methods: Bilingual personnel administered a 29-question survey in Spanish and English to agricultural supervisors and crew chiefs at two industry trainings in Washington (WA) State (12/2023, 1/2024). Data were analyzed in SPSS. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize the data with chi-squared tests for group comparisons by language.

Results: A total of 116 surveys were collected, with 61% completed in Spanish. Almost one-fifth (18%) of respondents reported "hypertension/cardiovascular disease" as a condition that impacts their own health, and 19% reported "asthma/respiratory disease." Of respondents, 80% agreed they have been exposed to wildfire smoke at work, and 77% reported they supervised workers who have been exposed to smoke. A significantly greater proportion of completers in Spanish (90%) reported being concerned with their own health and their workers' health in relation to smoke exposure than those completing in English (64%). Most (81%) respondents agreed they can recognize signs/symptoms when a worker is not feeling well due to smoke exposure, but only 63% reported having had training on managing workers with smoke-related symptoms. N95 masks were identified as the most realistic protective control to implement when wildfire smoke is present. There were significant differences by language group regarding what resources respondents identified as accurate for AQ monitoring at work. Most respondents (79%) had heard of the wildfire smoke rule in Washington.

Conclusion: Wildfire smoke is an occupational health threat for outdoors workers that is expected to increase. Supervisors who work in agricultural workplaces are required by law in Washington, Oregon, and California to monitor AQ, manage workers' symptoms, and implement protective controls at certain AQ thresholds. Study findings identify gaps in these areas and will support ongoing training of a critical subsector of the agricultural workforce.