{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,10]],"date-time":"2026-10-10T20:39:43Z","timestamp":1791664783176,"version":"4.3.4"},"reference-count":30,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,2,26]],"date-time":"2025-02-26T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1740528000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Public Health"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Low-income families in dry regions, including in the Southwestern United States, frequently cool their homes with evaporative (\u201cswamp\u201d) coolers (ECs). While inexpensive and energy efficient compared to central air conditioners, ECs pull unfiltered outdoor air into the home, creating a health hazard to occupants when wildfire smoke and heat events coincide. A community-engaged research project to reduce wildfire smoke in homes was conducted in California\u2019s San Joaquin Valley in homes of Spanish-speaking agricultural workers. A total of 88 study participants with ECs were asked about their level of satisfaction with their EC and their willingness to pay for air filtration. About 47% of participants reported dissatisfaction with their EC, with the most frequently reported reason being that it brings in dust and air pollution. Participants were highly satisfied with air cleaners and air filters that were offered to them free-of-charge. However, a willingness to pay analysis showed that air filtration solutions would not be adopted without significant subsidies; furthermore, air filtration would be an ongoing cost to participants due to the need to regularly replace filters. Short-term filtration solutions for EC users are feasible to implement and may reduce smoke exposure during wildfire events. Such solutions would need to be offered at low-or no-cost to reduce barriers to adoption. Longer term solutions include prioritizing homes with ECs in wildfire smoke exposed regions for replacement with air cooling technologies that provide clean air. Because ECs are disproportionately in low-income homes, addressing smoke intrusion through these devices is an environmental justice issue.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3389\/fpubh.2025.1541053","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,2,26]],"date-time":"2025-02-26T07:35:09Z","timestamp":1740555309000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":10,"title":["Evaporative coolers and wildfire smoke exposure: a climate justice issue in hot, dry regions"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"13","author":[{"given":"Gina M.","family":"Solomon","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Nayamin","family":"Martinez","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Julie","family":"Von Behren","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Isabella","family":"Kaser","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"David","family":"Chang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Aditya","family":"Singh","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Stephanie","family":"Jarmul","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Shelly L.","family":"Miller","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Peggy","family":"Reynolds","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Mohammad","family":"Heidarinejad","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Brent","family":"Stephens","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Brett C.","family":"Singer","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Jeff","family":"Wagner","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"John R.","family":"Balmes","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,2,26]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"248","DOI":"10.1038\/s41612-022-00248-4","article-title":"Global increase in wildfire potential from compound fire weather and drought","volume":"5","author":"Richardson","year":"2022","journal-title":"NPJ Clim Atmos Sci"},{"key":"ref2","volume-title":"Climate change 2022 \u2013 Impacts, adaptation and vulnerability: Working group II contribution to the sixth assessment report of the intergovernmental panel on climate change","year":"2023"},{"key":"ref3","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"e2011048118","DOI":"10.1073\/pnas.2011048118","article-title":"The changing risk and burden of wildfire in the United States","volume":"118","author":"Burke","year":"2021","journal-title":"Proc Natl Acad Sci USA"},{"key":"ref4","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"e579","DOI":"10.1016\/S2542-5196(21)00200-X","article-title":"Mortality risk attributable to wildfire-related PM2\u00b75 pollution: a global time series study in 749 locations","volume":"5","author":"Chen","year":"2021","journal-title":"Lancet Planetar Health"},{"key":"ref5","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"eadl1252","DOI":"10.1126\/sciadv.adl1252","article-title":"Mortality attributable to PM2.5 from wildland fires in California from 2008 to 2018","volume":"10","author":"Connolly","year":"2024","journal-title":"Sci Adv"},{"key":"ref6","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"229","DOI":"10.1029\/2018GH000144","article-title":"Future fire impacts on smoke concentrations, visibility, and health in the contiguous United States","volume":"2","author":"Ford","year":"2018","journal-title":"Geohealth"},{"key":"ref7","unstructured":"Sengupta\n              S.\n            \n          \n          Wildfire smoke is poisoning California\u2019s kids. 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