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Presented by:
Brian Meacham, Worcester Polytechnic Institute
Drew Martin, Worcester Polytechnic Institute
Mai Tomida, Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Most people are familiar with the wide-ranging impact and cost of fires to people and property; they may not, however, be aware of the impact fires have on the natural environment, as such impact is often less immediate and obvious. The environmental impacts of fire can include air contamination from the fire plume, which in turn may contaminate land and water as particulate settles; contamination from firefighting water runoff, which may contain toxic products; and other environmental discharges or releases from burned materials or resulting from burning structures, tanks, or other containers. This session presents the outcomes of a Fire Protection Research Foundation-supported project to develop and disseminate a compilation of the existing state of knowledge and gaps in our understanding of the environmental impacts of fire.