Cookies help us run our site more efficiently.

By clicking “Accept”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. View our Privacy Policy for more information or to customize your cookie preferences.

How Wildfire Smoke Exposure Affects Your Health

News Feed
Saturday, January 11, 2025

Firefighters continue battling Palisades fire as flames rage across Los Angeles, California, United States on January 09, 2025. (Photo by Official Flickr Account of CAL FIRE / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images)Wildfire seasons are becoming more and more devastating and damaging for everyone.Wildfires aren’t just dangerous for the people and wildlife living directly around the flames, but also for those nearby who are exposed to heavy smoke. And because smoke can travel long distances, even people thousands of miles away from the fires can feel their effects. Scientists are actively learning about the harms linked to wildfire smoke, but early findings suggest that wildfire smoke can have a seriously detrimental effect on our short and long-term health. Why breathing in wildfire smoke is harmfulWildfire smoke contains a mixture of gases, liquids and solid particles. What concerns scientists the most about wildfire smoke is the fine particulate matter (called PM 2.5), or small pieces of liquid and gas that can stay suspended in the air. The smallest particles are the ones that can get deepest into the lungs and cause annoying symptoms — like a cough or shortness of breath — in the short term and more concerning health problems down the road, explained Colleen Reid, an environmental epidemiologist and health geographer with the University of Colorado Boulder.According to Reid, no level of PM 2.5 is considered safe — but at higher levels, the health effects are clearly worse.“A study from Montana found that seasons with record-high smoke were followed by more severe flu seasons, adding to the growing body of evidence that wildfire smoke can make people more susceptible to viruses and infections.”How wildfire smoke immediately affects usThese tiny particles can get deep into our lungs and enter the bloodstream, at which point they can travel to other organs and cause widespread inflammation, Reid explained. One report found that teens living near wildfires have higher levels of inflammatory markers in their blood. Wildfire smoke can cause sore throats, a cough, watery eyes, congestion, headaches and difficulty breathing or shortness of breath. Smoke particles can also reach the brain and trigger cognitive issues. According to Rosana Aguilera Becker, an environmental health scientist with the University of California, San Diego, people who have asthma, respiratory illnesses or COPD are most at risk and have higher rates of hospital admissions due to smoke during wildfires. In areas close to wildfires, researchers have found a spike in inhaler refills among people who have asthma. Increases in visits to the emergency room for cardiovascular events and heart attacks have also been recorded in communities experiencing wildfires. What we know about the long-term health effectsThe effects don’t go away once the smoke clears. A study from Montana found that seasons with record-high smoke were followed by more severe flu seasons, adding to the growing body of evidence that wildfire smoke can make people more susceptible to viruses and infections. The long-term health consequences linked to wildfire smoke exposure are understudied, largely because this hasn’t been a big issue until recently. In the past, there would be a wildfire, smoke would shoot into the sky for a short period of time, then the clogged air would clear out. It wasn’t until the past few fire seasons that the air quality has been really bad over really large geographic areas for really long periods of time, Reid said.But there are some clues. Wildfire smoke is thought to be a risk factor for dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. And through her research, Reid has found that when pregnant people are exposed to wildfire smoke, there’s a greater risk of the baby being born early or at low birth weight. A study conducted on monkeys found that primates exposed to wildfires as infants had worse pulmonary functioning and immune functioning later on in life. This brings up the question of “what happens to children when they’re exposed to wildfire smoke when they’re still developing,” Becker said. Evidence looking at the long-term health effects of other types of air pollution suggests that harmful air can impact our respiratory health, cardiovascular health and neurological health. One study found that kids who grew up in areas with polluted air, like Los Angeles, go on to experience worse lung function as adults.“We could assume, based on what we know, that there are similar things with wildfire smoke,” Reid said, noting that we really need more research on wildfire smoke specifically. Allen J. Schaben via Getty ImagesPeople can experience the effects of wildfire smoke even from thousands of miles away.Does proximity to the wildfire matter?Scientists know the most about smoke exposure in communities that are close to wildfires. But what happens when that air travels thousands of miles, as it did this summer when the jet stream brought Oregon’s wildfire smoke to the East Coast? According to Reid, there can definitely be health consequences in these places, too. In the past, air pollution that traveled long distances was minuscule, but the fires in Oregon and Canada showed us that wildfire smoke can travel far and at really high concentrations. This is an area scientists will need to look into in the coming years. There may be differences in how fresh smoke and older smoke affects our health — but, again, no level of PM 2.5 is safe. Our behaviors also play a role. When a fire erupts in the West, people are aware of the fire and know to stay in. You can smell it and you can see plumes of smoke spilling into the air. On the East Coast, where there are no plumes or traces of a campfire scent, some people may not take the necessary steps to protect themselves from inhaling bad air, Reid said. Here’s how to protect yourself from wildfire smokeYou can gauge the quality of the air around you by checking your local air quality index (AQI). Reid recommends the app Smoke Sense, which provides an air quality map and recommendations for what you should or shouldn’t do. Air NOW is another tool that sends local alerts about AQIs. If PM 2.5 levels are high, the best thing to do is stay inside and limit your outdoor activities, Becker said. It’s OK for most people to exercise at lower PM 2.5 levels, as the benefits of exercise are thought to outweigh the risks. We Need Your SupportOther news outlets have retreated behind paywalls. At HuffPost, we believe journalism should be free for everyone.Would you help us provide essential information to our readers during this critical time? We can't do it without you.Can't afford to contribute? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.You've supported HuffPost before, and we'll be honest — we could use your help again. We view our mission to provide free, fair news as critically important in this crucial moment, and we can't do it without you.Whether you give once or many more times, we appreciate your contribution to keeping our journalism free for all.You've supported HuffPost before, and we'll be honest — we could use your help again. We view our mission to provide free, fair news as critically important in this crucial moment, and we can't do it without you.Whether you give just one more time or sign up again to contribute regularly, we appreciate you playing a part in keeping our journalism free for all.Support HuffPostAlready contributed? Log in to hide these messages.If you can afford an air purifier — they can be pricey! — get one with a HEPA filter. Keep your doors and windows closed. Older homes and rental properties tend to be leakier and allow more air pollution in. You can also purchase a MERV-13 filter and put it in a box fan or your AC unit. Make sure you’re regularly cleaning your car filters as they can collect a lot of particles over time. (You can find a list of filtering products certified by the Asthma & Allergy Foundation of America here.)If you do venture outside when the PM 2.5 levels are high, bring a mask. N95 masks are the gold standard because they filter all of the air that you breathe in. Though surgical masks are less effective, they’re ultimately better than having no barrier between you and the harmful particles in wildfire smoke.

Smoke from a fire can have a dangerous impact on your physical and mental health, even from thousands of miles away.

Firefighters continue battling Palisades fire as flames rage across Los Angeles, California, United States on January 09, 2025. (Photo by Official Flickr Account of CAL FIRE / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Wildfire seasons are becoming more and more devastating and damaging for everyone.

Wildfires aren’t just dangerous for the people and wildlife living directly around the flames, but also for those nearby who are exposed to heavy smoke. And because smoke can travel long distances, even people thousands of miles away from the fires can feel their effects.

Scientists are actively learning about the harms linked to wildfire smoke, but early findings suggest that wildfire smoke can have a seriously detrimental effect on our short and long-term health.

Why breathing in wildfire smoke is harmful

Wildfire smoke contains a mixture of gases, liquids and solid particles. What concerns scientists the most about wildfire smoke is the fine particulate matter (called PM 2.5), or small pieces of liquid and gas that can stay suspended in the air.

The smallest particles are the ones that can get deepest into the lungs and cause annoying symptoms — like a cough or shortness of breath — in the short term and more concerning health problems down the road, explained Colleen Reid, an environmental epidemiologist and health geographer with the University of Colorado Boulder.

According to Reid, no level of PM 2.5 is considered safe — but at higher levels, the health effects are clearly worse.

“A study from Montana found that seasons with record-high smoke were followed by more severe flu seasons, adding to the growing body of evidence that wildfire smoke can make people more susceptible to viruses and infections.”

How wildfire smoke immediately affects us

These tiny particles can get deep into our lungs and enter the bloodstream, at which point they can travel to other organs and cause widespread inflammation, Reid explained. One report found that teens living near wildfires have higher levels of inflammatory markers in their blood. Wildfire smoke can cause sore throats, a cough, watery eyes, congestion, headaches and difficulty breathing or shortness of breath. Smoke particles can also reach the brain and trigger cognitive issues.

According to Rosana Aguilera Becker, an environmental health scientist with the University of California, San Diego, people who have asthma, respiratory illnesses or COPD are most at risk and have higher rates of hospital admissions due to smoke during wildfires. In areas close to wildfires, researchers have found a spike in inhaler refills among people who have asthma.

Increases in visits to the emergency room for cardiovascular events and heart attacks have also been recorded in communities experiencing wildfires.

What we know about the long-term health effects

The effects don’t go away once the smoke clears. A study from Montana found that seasons with record-high smoke were followed by more severe flu seasons, adding to the growing body of evidence that wildfire smoke can make people more susceptible to viruses and infections.

The long-term health consequences linked to wildfire smoke exposure are understudied, largely because this hasn’t been a big issue until recently. In the past, there would be a wildfire, smoke would shoot into the sky for a short period of time, then the clogged air would clear out. It wasn’t until the past few fire seasons that the air quality has been really bad over really large geographic areas for really long periods of time, Reid said.

But there are some clues. Wildfire smoke is thought to be a risk factor for dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. And through her research, Reid has found that when pregnant people are exposed to wildfire smoke, there’s a greater risk of the baby being born early or at low birth weight.

A study conducted on monkeys found that primates exposed to wildfires as infants had worse pulmonary functioning and immune functioning later on in life. This brings up the question of “what happens to children when they’re exposed to wildfire smoke when they’re still developing,” Becker said.

Evidence looking at the long-term health effects of other types of air pollution suggests that harmful air can impact our respiratory health, cardiovascular health and neurological health. One study found that kids who grew up in areas with polluted air, like Los Angeles, go on to experience worse lung function as adults.

“We could assume, based on what we know, that there are similar things with wildfire smoke,” Reid said, noting that we really need more research on wildfire smoke specifically.

Allen J. Schaben via Getty Images

People can experience the effects of wildfire smoke even from thousands of miles away.

Does proximity to the wildfire matter?

Scientists know the most about smoke exposure in communities that are close to wildfires. But what happens when that air travels thousands of miles, as it did this summer when the jet stream brought Oregon’s wildfire smoke to the East Coast? According to Reid, there can definitely be health consequences in these places, too.

In the past, air pollution that traveled long distances was minuscule, but the fires in Oregon and Canada showed us that wildfire smoke can travel far and at really high concentrations. This is an area scientists will need to look into in the coming years. There may be differences in how fresh smoke and older smoke affects our health — but, again, no level of PM 2.5 is safe.

Our behaviors also play a role. When a fire erupts in the West, people are aware of the fire and know to stay in. You can smell it and you can see plumes of smoke spilling into the air. On the East Coast, where there are no plumes or traces of a campfire scent, some people may not take the necessary steps to protect themselves from inhaling bad air, Reid said.

Here’s how to protect yourself from wildfire smoke

You can gauge the quality of the air around you by checking your local air quality index (AQI). Reid recommends the app Smoke Sense, which provides an air quality map and recommendations for what you should or shouldn’t do. Air NOW is another tool that sends local alerts about AQIs.

If PM 2.5 levels are high, the best thing to do is stay inside and limit your outdoor activities, Becker said. It’s OK for most people to exercise at lower PM 2.5 levels, as the benefits of exercise are thought to outweigh the risks.

We Need Your Support

Other news outlets have retreated behind paywalls. At HuffPost, we believe journalism should be free for everyone.

Would you help us provide essential information to our readers during this critical time? We can't do it without you.

Can't afford to contribute? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.

You've supported HuffPost before, and we'll be honest — we could use your help again. We view our mission to provide free, fair news as critically important in this crucial moment, and we can't do it without you.

Whether you give once or many more times, we appreciate your contribution to keeping our journalism free for all.

You've supported HuffPost before, and we'll be honest — we could use your help again. We view our mission to provide free, fair news as critically important in this crucial moment, and we can't do it without you.

Whether you give just one more time or sign up again to contribute regularly, we appreciate you playing a part in keeping our journalism free for all.

Support HuffPost

Already contributed? Log in to hide these messages.

If you can afford an air purifier — they can be pricey! — get one with a HEPA filter. Keep your doors and windows closed. Older homes and rental properties tend to be leakier and allow more air pollution in. You can also purchase a MERV-13 filter and put it in a box fan or your AC unit. Make sure you’re regularly cleaning your car filters as they can collect a lot of particles over time. (You can find a list of filtering products certified by the Asthma & Allergy Foundation of America here.)

If you do venture outside when the PM 2.5 levels are high, bring a mask. N95 masks are the gold standard because they filter all of the air that you breathe in. Though surgical masks are less effective, they’re ultimately better than having no barrier between you and the harmful particles in wildfire smoke.

Read the full story here.
Photos courtesy of

Why the health risks from air pollution could be worse than we thought

A new study found elevated and previously overlooked health risks for communities living near industrial polluters.

Many people who live near heavy industry are routinely exposed to dozens of different pollutants, which can result in a multitude of health problems.Traditionally, environmental regulators have assessed the risks of chemical exposure on an individual basis. But that approach has led to underestimates of the total health risks faced by vulnerable populations, according to a new study.Now researchers at Johns Hopkins University have developed a new method for measuring the cumulative effects on human health of multiple toxic air pollutants. Their findings were published last week in Environmental Health Perspectives.Regulators typically measure community risk by looking at the primary health effects of individual chemicals, an approach that often fails to address their combined risks, said Keeve Nachman, the study’s senior author.Residents in disadvantaged communities are exposed to a toxic stew of chemicals daily, and they “don’t just breathe one at a time, [they] breathe all the chemicals in the air at once,” said Peter DeCarlo, another of the study’s authors.Follow Climate & environment“Very little has happened to protect these people. And one of the major reasons for that is that current approaches have not done a good job showing they’re in harm’s way,” Nachman said.“When we regulate chemicals, we pretend that we’re only exposed to one chemical at a time,” Nachman continued. “If we have each chemical and we only think about the most sensitive effect, but we ignore the fact that it could potentially cause all these other effects to different parts of the body, we are missing protecting people from the collective mixture of chemicals that act together.”Nachman, DeCarlo and their colleagues set out to more accurately account for the total burden of breathing multiple toxic air pollutants.The study assessed the risks faced by communities in southeastern Pennsylvania living near petrochemical facilities using a mobile laboratory to measure 32 hazardous air pollutants, including vinyl chloride, formaldehyde and benzene. The researchers developed real-time profiles of the pollution concentrations in the air and translated them into estimates of what people are actually breathing.Using these estimates and a database of the chemicals’ toxic effects on various organs, the researchers created projections of the long-term cumulative health impacts of the pollution.By looking past the immediate health effects of chemicals and measuring what happens as concentrations increase, negative health outcomes can be detected in other parts of the body, Nachman said.For example, while EPA risk assessments consider only the respiratory effects of formaldehyde, the study found potential health impacts in 10 other organ systems, including neurological, developmental and reproductive harms.The cumulative risk study appears at a fraught moment for environmental regulation. Although the Biden administration in November released a draft framework for monitoring the cumulative impact of chemical exposure, the Trump administration has announced plans to roll back dozens of Biden administration environmental rules and is considering shutting down the EPA’s Office of Research and Development.A spokesperson for the American Chemistry Council, an industry trade group, said in an email that the Johns Hopkins research “may provide some useful information” but that “further assessment, replication and validation will be needed” of the methods and substances assessed in the study.“ACC continues to support the development of scientifically robust data, methods and approaches to underpin cumulative risk assessments,” the spokesperson added.The EPA did not provide an immediate comment while it reviewed the study.Jen Duggan, the executive director of the Environmental Integrity Project, said communities often face higher health impacts than the EPA estimates due to their exposure to dangerous chemicals from multiple sources.“The authors of this paper powerfully demonstrate how EPA has repeatedly underestimated the true health risks for people living in the shadow of industrial polluters,” Duggan said.

Utah Bans Fluoride In Public Drinking Water

Republican Gov. Spencer Cox signed the legislation despite widespread opposition from dentists and national health organizations.

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Utah has become the first state to ban fluoride in public drinking water, despite widespread opposition from dentists and national health organizations.Republican Gov. Spencer Cox signed legislation late Thursday that bars cities and communities from deciding whether to add the mineral to their water systems.Fluoride strengthens teeth and reduces cavities by replacing minerals lost during normal wear and tear, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Utah lawmakers who pushed for a ban said putting fluoride in water was too expensive. Cox, who grew up and raised his own children in a community without fluoridated water, compared it recently to being “medicated” by the government.The ban comes weeks after U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has expressed skepticism about water fluoridation, was sworn into office.More than 200 million people in the U.S., or almost two-thirds of the population, receive fluoridated water through community water. The addition of low levels of fluoride to drinking water has long been considered one of the greatest public health achievements of the last century.But some cities across the country have gotten rid of fluoride from their water, and other municipalities are considering doing the same. A few months ago, a federal judge ordered the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to regulate fluoride in drinking water because high levels could pose a risk to the intellectual development of children.We Don't Work For Billionaires. We Work For You.Big money interests are running the government — and influencing the news you read. While other outlets are retreating behind paywalls and bending the knee to political pressure, HuffPost is proud to be unbought and unfiltered. Will you help us keep it that way? You can even access our stories ad-free.You've supported HuffPost before, and we'll be honest — we could use your help again. We won't back down from our mission of providing free, fair news during this critical moment. But we can't do it without you.For the first time, we're offering an ad-free experience to qualifying contributors who support our fearless journalism. We hope you'll join us.You've supported HuffPost before, and we'll be honest — we could use your help again. We won't back down from our mission of providing free, fair news during this critical moment. But we can't do it without you.For the first time, we're offering an ad-free experience to qualifying contributors who support our fearless journalism. We hope you'll join us.Support HuffPostAlready contributed? Log in to hide these messages.The president of the American Dental Association, Brett Kessler, has said the amounts of fluoride added to drinking water are below levels considered problematic.Opponents warn the ban will disproportionately affect low-income residents who may rely on public drinking water having fluoride as their only source of preventative dental care. Low-income families may not be able to afford regular dentist visits or the fluoride tablets some people buy as a supplement in cities without fluoridation.The sponsor of the Utah legislation, Republican Rep. Stephanie Gricius, acknowledged fluoride has benefits, but said it was an issue of “individual choice” to not have it in the water.

Dozens of House Democrats push back on planned EPA research and development cuts

Dozens of House Democrats pushed back on planned Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) cuts in a Thursday letter to the agency. “We are particularly concerned by the proposal to eliminate up to 75 percent of employees within EPA’s Office of Research and Development (ORD),” the letter, from Rep. Greg Landsman (D-Ohio) and addressed to EPA Administrator...

Dozens of House Democrats pushed back on planned Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) cuts in a Thursday letter to the agency. “We are particularly concerned by the proposal to eliminate up to 75 percent of employees within EPA’s Office of Research and Development (ORD),” the letter, from Rep. Greg Landsman (D-Ohio) and addressed to EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin, reads. “Firing nearly 1,200 dedicated ORD public servants across the country would decimate the scientific backbone of EPA which provides independent, objective, and unparallelled research that informs Agency assessments and decision-making,” they added. The letter featured the signatures of over 60 House Democrats including Reps. Nikema Williams (Ga.), Ro Khanna (Calif.), Summer Lee (Pa.), Don Beyer (Va.), Joe Neguse (Colo.), Jamie Raskin (Md.), Pramila Jayapal (Wash.) and Rashida Tlaib (Mich.). The Hill reported last week that the EPA was considering the cutting of its science arm and dropping most of the employees of the branch, per documents reviewed by Democratic staff for the House Science, Space and Technology Committee. The termination of the Office of Research and Development as an EPA National Program Office is called for in a plan reviewed by committee staffers. Fifty percent to 70 percent of the 1,540 staffers in the office would be cut under the plan. “While no decisions have been made yet, we are actively listening to employees at all levels to gather ideas on how to better fulfill agency statutory obligations, increase efficiency, and ensure the EPA is as up-to-date and effective as ever,” EPA spokesperson Molly Vaseliou said in a previous statement. In his letter, Landsman said dropping “the majority of ORD employees would be particularly harmful to EPA’s work to address industrial pollution, contaminated air and drinking water, environmental health, and worsening natural disasters.” The Ohio Democrat also questioned the EPA about the reasoning behind the staff cuts in the plan and the way the agency is prepping “to mitigate the loss of scientific expertise, institutional knowledge, and subject matter capacity resulting from this proposed action.” The Hill has reached out to the EPA for comment.

When a 1-in-100 year flood washed through the Coorong, it made the vital microbiome of this lagoon healthier

The 2022 floods triggered shifts in the Coorong’s microbiome—similar to our gut bacteria on new diets—revealing why freshwater flows are vital to wetland health.

Darcy Whittaker, CC BYYou might know South Australia’s iconic Coorong from the famous Australian children’s book, Storm Boy, set around this coastal lagoon. This internationally important wetland is sacred to the Ngarrindjeri people and a haven for migratory birds. The lagoon is the final stop for the Murray River’s waters before they reach the sea. Tens of thousands of migratory waterbirds visit annually. Pelicans, plovers, terns and ibises nest, while orange-bellied parrots visit and Murray Cod swim. But there are other important inhabitants – trillions of microscopic organisms. You might not give much thought to the sedimentary microbes of a lagoon. But these tiny microbes in the mud are vital to river ecosystems, quietly cycling nutrients and supporting the food web. Healthy microbes make for a healthy Coorong – and this unassuming lagoon is a key indicator for the health of the entire Murray-Darling Basin. For decades, the Coorong has been in poor health. Low water flows have concentrated salt and an excess of nutrients. But in 2022, torrential rains on the east coast turned into a once-in-a-century flood, which swept down the Murray into the Coorong. In our new research, we took the pulse of the Coorong’s microbiome after this huge flood and found the surging fresh water corrected microbial imbalances. The numbers of methane producing microbes fell while beneficial nutrient-eating bacteria grew. Populations of plants, animals and invertebrates boomed. We can’t just wait for irregular floods – we have to find ways to ensure enough water is left in the river to cleanse the Coorong naturally. Under a scanning electron micrograph, the mixed community of microbes in water is visible. This image shows a seawater sample. Sophie Leterme/Flinders University, CC BY Rivers have microbiomes, just like us Our gut microbes can change after a heavy meal or in response to dietary changes. In humans, a sudden shift in diet can encourage either helpful or harmful microbes. In the same way, aquatic microbes respond to changes in salinity and freshwater flows. Depending on what changes are happening, some species boom and others bust. As water gets saltier in brackish lagoons, communities of microbes have to adapt or die. High salinity often favours microbes with anaerobic metabolisms, meaning they don’t need oxygen. But these tiny lifeforms often produce the highly potent greenhouse gas methane. The microbes in wetlands are a large natural source of the gas. While we know pulses of freshwater are vital for river health, they don’t happen often enough. The waters of the Murray-Darling Basin support most of Australia’s irrigated farming. Negotiations over how to ensure adequate environmental flows have been fraught – and long-running. Water buybacks have improved matters somewhat, but researchers have found the river basin’s ecosystems are not in good condition. Wetlands such as the Coorong are a natural source of methane. The saltier the water gets, the more environmentally harmful microbes flourish – potentially producing more methane. Vincent_Nguyen The Coorong is out of balance A century ago, regular pulses of fresh water from the Murray flushed nutrients and sediment out of the Coorong, helping maintain habitat for fish, waterbirds and the plants and invertebrates they eat. While other catchments discharge into the Coorong, the Murray is by far the major water source. Over the next decades, growth in water use for farming meant less water in the river. In the 1930s, barrages were built near the river’s mouth to control nearby lake levels and prevent high salinity moving upstream in the face of reduced river flows. Major droughts have added further stress. Under these low-flow conditions, salt and nutrients get more and more concentrated, reaching extreme levels due to South Australia’s high rate of evaporation. In response, microbial communities can trigger harmful algae blooms or create low-oxygen “dead zones”, suffocating river life. The big flush of 2022 In 2022, torrential rain fell in many parts of eastern Australia. Rainfall on the inland side of the Great Dividing Range filled rivers in the Murray-Darling Basin. That year became the largest flood since 1956. We set about recording the changes. As the salinity fell in ultra-salty areas, local microbial communities in the sediment were reshuffled. The numbers of methane-producing microbes fell sharply. This means the floods would have temporarily reduced the Coorong’s greenhouse footprint. Christopher Keneally sampling for microbes in the Coorong in 2022. Tyler Dornan, CC BY When we talk about harmful bacteria, we’re referring to microbes that emit greenhouse gases such as methane, drive the accumulation of toxic sulfide (such as Desulfobacteraceae), or cause algae blooms (Cyanobacteria) that can sicken people, fish and wildlife. During the flood, beneficial microbes from groups such as Halanaerobiaceae and Beggiatoaceae grew rapidly, consuming nutrients such as nitrogen, which is extremely high in the Coorong. This is very useful to prevent algae blooms. Beggiatoaceae bacteria also remove toxic sulfide compounds. The floods also let plants and invertebrates bounce back, flushed out salt and supported a healthier food web. On balance, we found the 2022 flood was positive for the Coorong. It’s as if the Coorong switched packets of chips for carrot sticks – the flood pulse reduced harmful bacteria and encouraged beneficial ones. While the variety of microbes shrank in some areas, those remaining performed key functions helping keep the ecosystem in balance. From 2022 to 2023, consistent high flows let native fish and aquatic plants bounce back, in turn improving feeding grounds for birds and allowing black swans to thrive. A group of black swans cruise the Coorong’s waters. Darcy Whittaker, CC BY Floods aren’t enough When enough water is allowed to flow down the Murray to the Coorong, ecosystems get healthier. But the Coorong has been in poor health for decades. It can’t just rely on rare flood events. Next year, policymakers will review the Murray-Darling Basin Plan, which sets the rules for sharing water in Australia’s largest and most economically important river system. Balancing our needs with those of other species is tricky. But if we neglect the environment, we risk more degradation and biodiversity loss in the Coorong. As the climate changes and rising water demands squeeze the basin, decision-makers must keep the water flowing for wildlife. Christopher Keneally receives funding from the Australian Government Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water. His research is affiliated with The University of Adelaide and the Goyder Institute for Water Research. Chris is also a committee member and former president of the Biology Society of South Australia, and a member of the Australian Freshwater Sciences Society.Matt Gibbs receives funding from the Australian Government Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water. Sophie Leterme receives funding from the Australian Research Council (ARC). Her research is affiliated with Flinders University, with the ARC Training Centre for Biofilm Research & Innovation, and with the Goyder Institute for Water Research.Justin Brookes does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

Murphy, a Beloved Bald Eagle Who Became a Foster Dad, Dies Following Violent Storms in Missouri

A beloved bald eagle who gained popularity after incubating a rock is mourned after dying from head trauma sustained during violent storms in Missouri last week

A beloved bald eagle who gained popularity for incubating a rock in 2023 is being mourned Saturday after the 33-year-old avian died following intense storms that recently moved through Missouri. Murphy, who surpassed the average life span of 25 years, died last week at the World Bird Sanctuary in Valley Park, Missouri. Sanctuary officials believe the violent storms that ripped apart homes and claimed 12 lives last weekend may have factored in the bird's death. They said birds have access to shelters where they can weather storms and the sanctuary has contingency plans for different environmental situations. But evacuations weren't performed since no tornadoes approached the sanctuary. Three other birds who were in the same shelter with Murphy survived. A veterinarian performed a necropsy and found the bald eagle sustained head trauma. “We are unable to determine if Murphy was spooked by something and hit his head while jumping off a perch or if wind and precipitation played a part in the injury,” a statement shared by the sanctuary on social media said. Murphy lived in the sanctuary's Avian Avenue exhibit area and rose to prominence in 2023 when he incubated a rock. His instincts were rewarded when he was allowed to foster an injured eaglet that he nurtured back to health. The eaglet was eventually released back to the wild and another eaglet was entrusted to Murphy's care. The second eaglet is expected to be released into the wild this summer.“In honor of Murphy’s legacy, we plan to name the eventual eagle fostering aviary Murphy’s Manor, so that we can continue to remember him for decades to come,” the sanctuary's statement added.Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.Photos You Should See - Feb. 2025

Suggested Viewing

Join us to forge
a sustainable future

Our team is always growing.
Become a partner, volunteer, sponsor, or intern today.
Let us know how you would like to get involved!

CONTACT US

sign up for our mailing list to stay informed on the latest films and environmental headlines.

Subscribers receive a free day pass for streaming Cinema Verde.
Thank you! Your submission has been received!
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.