New study details wildfire smoke chemicals affecting Reno's air quality

Western wildfires have grown larger, longer and more intense, exposing millions of Americans to smoke each year. In California, the 2020 and 2021 fire seasons saw a ten‑fold increase in the number of fires compared with any previous period in the state’s history, sending plumes of smoke across the region. Northern Nevada, situated downwind of California’s fire belts, experienced prolonged periods of smoke‑filled skies, with residents of Reno reporting months of reduced air quality during those two years.

A recent scientific study examined the composition of the smoke that drifted into Nevada and identified a suite of potentially hazardous chemicals, including fine particulate matter, volatile organic compounds and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons known to pose health risks. The analysis, conducted on air samples collected throughout the 2020‑2021 fire seasons, quantifies concentrations of these pollutants at levels that exceed typical background measurements, underscoring the broader public‑health implications of distant wildfire events for communities far from the fire source.