Using NASA EOS to Assess Air Quality and Health Risks Associated with the Virginia Dismal Swamp Fires of 2011 for Improved Decision Making

In August of 2011, lightning strikes in the Great Dismal Swamp of Virginia and North Carolina sparked fires that raged for three and a half months until late November. Though exacerbated by the lightning strikes, the 2011 Lateral West fire was in large part blamed on a substantial drought being felt by the region prior to that August. Wildfires are an expected annual event in the Great Dismal Swamp, but in 2011 the Lateral West fire was much larger and had a greater impact on the region. Since the peat in the land burns deep into the ground, the fires are difficult to contain and are able to resurface anywhere at any time. The larger Lateral West Fire raised concern for air quality when smoke from the fire reached as far north as Washington D.C. Not only did this fire cause damage to an already threatened ecosystem but also adversely affected air quality in the region, causing levels of PM2.5, PM10, carbon monoxide, and ozone to increase to harmful levels. CALISPO and MODIS Aqua/ Terra were used to determine the composition of aerosols, trace gases, and particulate matter introduced into the atmosphere from the smoke plumes. In addition, NOAA's HYSPLIT trajectory models provided vertical and horizontal distribution models of aerosol/ particulate matter as well as the direction smoke plumes traveled during the time of the wildfires. In August of 2011, NASA Langley Research Center's High Spectral Resolution Lidar program conducted fly-overs in the southeastern region of Virginia. These air quality data will be utilized to observe the effects of the 2011 Dismal Swamp fires on local communities. This information combined with NASA EOS will provide the partners with an analysis of air quality and monitoring techniques for future wildfire events in the Great Dismal Swamp. By analyzing smoke plumes and air quality changes as a result of the Lateral West fire of 2011, future monitoring and prediction models can be established and utilized by refuge management, as well as our partners, the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (VADEQ), and The Nature Conservancy (TNC). Wildfires are a common event in the Great Dismal Swamp; having predictive tools to share with authorities and citizens of the region can reduce negative implications of smoke and related health issues. This information can help to minimize the effect on health issues and wildfire emission impacts directly caused by wildfires and future wildfire seasons in the Great Dismal Swamp.