DOH & ECY just released their Wildfire Smoke guidance.
The Departments of Health and Ecology guidance for cancelling outdoor events or activities and closing schools due to wildfire smoke impacts on public health is now posted. The full guidance was written specifically for local health officers. Summaries of the guidance relevant to outdoor event and activities cancellations and school closures are also available, and these include a link to the full document. For future reference, you can also access these documents in the DOH Smoke from Fires Toolkit under “Wildfire Smoke Guidance for Local Public Health & Safety Officers”.
The development of this guidance was a collaborative effort with the Closures Workgroup of the larger Wildfire Smoke Impacts Advisory Group, an interagency group of government and academic partners.
Please note, the workgroup decided to not make any changes to the Air Pollution and School Activities Guide (PDF), which is based on the Washington Air Quality Advisory.
Please do not hesitate to contact myself or Julie Fox with questions about the closures guidance or other items regarding DOH wildfire smoke response.
Nancy P. Bernard, MPH, REHS, CPSI
Program Manager
School Environmental Health and Safety
Indoor Air Quality
Environmental Public Health Division
Washington State Department of Health
360-236-3072 | www.doh.wa.gov/schoolenvironment
