Quantifying Prescribed‐Fire Smoke Exposure Using Low‐Cost Sensors and Satellites: Springtime Burning in Eastern Kansas

Prescribed fires (fires intentionally set for mitigation purposes) produce pollutants, which have negative effects on human and animal health. One of the pollutants produced from fires is fine particulate matter (PM2.5). The Flint Hills (FH) region of Kansas experiences extensive prescribed burning each spring (March‐May). Smoke from prescribed fires is often understudied due to a lack of monitoring in the rural regions where prescribed burning occurs, as well as the short duration and small size of the fires. Our goal was to attribute PM2.5 concentrations to the prescribed burning in the FH. To determine PM2.5 increases from local burning, we used low‐cost PM2.5 sensors (PurpleAir) and satellite observations. The FH were also affected by smoke transported from fires in other regions during 2022. We separated the transported smoke from smoke from fires in eastern Kansas. Based on data from the PurpleAir sensors, we found the 24‐hr median PM2.5 to increase by 3.0–5.3 μg m−3 (based on different estimates) on days impacted by smoke from fires in the eastern Kansas region compared to days unimpacted by smoke. The FH region was the most impacted by smoke PM2.5 compared to other regions of Kansas, as observed in satellite products and in situ measurements. Additionally, our study found that hourly PM2.5 estimates from a satellite‐derived product aligned with our ground‐based measurements. Satellite‐derived products are useful in rural areas like the FH, where monitors are scarce, providing important PM2.5 estimates. Plain Language Summary Prescribed fires (fires intentionally set for land management) produce harmful air pollutants, including fine particulate matter (PM2.5). In the Flint Hills (FH) of Kansas, smoke from prescribed fires has not been studied enough. This is because there are fewer PM2.5 monitors in rural areas, and the fires are short‐lived. Our goal was to figure out how much PM2.5 comes from these prescribed burns in the FH, using low‐cost sensors (PurpleAir) and observations from satellites. The FH also experienced smoke from fires in other places in 2022. We separated the smoke from fires outside eastern Kansas from smoke that came from fires in eastern Kansas. The PurpleAir sensors showed that on days affected by smoke from eastern Kansas fires, the PM2.5 concentration increased between 3.0 and 5.3 μg m−3 compared to days without smoke. The FH was the most impacted region compared to other regions of Kansas, highlighting the need to better un