ASSOCIATED PRESS • February 4, 2026
Chronic exposure to pollution from wildfires has been linked to tens of thousands of deaths annually in the United States, according to a new study. The paper, published Wednesday in the journal Science Advances, found that from 2006 to 2020, long-term exposure to tiny particulates from wildfire smoke contributed to an average of 24,100 deaths a year in the lower 48 states. Along with decades of forest mismanagement, growing development in fire-prone areas has expanded the “urban wildland interface,” increasing wildfire risk with real consequences for human health, said Michael Jerrett, professor of environmental health science. The Trump administration’s rollbacks in climate change policy, even as the more destructive wildfires become more frequent in large part due to global warming, poses critical risks, the study’s authors said.