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2019 Spring | Education & Outreach, Environmental Justice

Clearing the Air: Indoor Air Quality in Alaska Native Villages

Student(s):

Winslow S. Lewis

Program or Department(s):

  • Program on the Environment
  • University of Washington

Site supervisor(s):

Erin McTigue and Arthur Wendel

Partner(s):

  • United States Environmental Protection Agency, Region 10

  • Agency for Toxic Substance and Disease Registry

Faculty advisor(s):

BreAnna Kinghorn, Seattle Children’s Hospital, Department of Epidemiology, University of Washington

Alaska Native (AN) children have been recorded to experience respiratory illnesses and infections at a disproportionately higher rate than the national average. Alaska’s housing stock exhibits a high prevalence of indoor air quality risk factors, including inadequate ventilation, overcrowding, and use of a woodstove as a heating source. While multiple studies have explored the association between indoor air quality and respiratory illness within rural Alaska, there has yet to be a formal review conducted on this issue. During my internship with the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 10 and Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), I conducted a review of this issue and used the compiled information to inform potential courses of action. Using a combination of literature review and informal conversations with informants connected to this issue, this review compiled publicly-available resources focused on AN respiratory health, indoor air quality, housing conditions, and intervention strategies used to address this issue. Additionally, this review offers a framework for evaluating large-scale indoor air quality programs through assessing the significance of trends in asthma hospitalization data. The most significant data gaps discovered within the body of research focused on this issue were data on the effectiveness of multi-component intervention strategies intended to address indoor air quality triggers, the prevalence of respiratory illnesses in AN populations, and the economic impact of this issue. Addressing these data gaps allows for identifying vulnerable areas, assessing the full impact of this issue, and designing effective intervention programs.