SPOKANE, Wash. – Researchers at Gonzaga University (GU) are studying how spring allergy season might be getting longer and more severe due to climate change.
“We’re finding that actually because we have earlier springs, probably due to climate change, the seasonal allergies are also shifting. There’s a second way that’s even more unexpected. It’s also the severity of pollen… it’s probably also increasing… but it sounds likely that plants… are getting larger and they’re actually releasing more pollen than they have historically,” Dr. Brian Henning the Director of the Institute for Climate, Water and the Environment at GU, said.
GU is partnering with the Washington State Department of Health. GU is one of the first sites in the state to use a pollen monitoring device.
“Pollen seasons are getting longer and more severe in Washington state and this is largely driven by climate change. Seattle is the only city in the state that has a pollen monitor that has been regularly reporting pollen concentrations. We are working on a pollen monitoring network that will place at least one pollen monitor in each of WA’s 10 climate zones. Gonzaga’s Center for Climate, Water, and the Environment was our first partner in this effort and together we are providing high quality pollen data to the Spokane area (when our monitor is working properly, we are still working out some kinks!). Emerging research suggests high pollen days are associated with increases in respiratory hospitalizations, wheeze, and the general malaise Washington’s 2 million plus seasonal allergy sufferers are all too familiar with,” Rad Cunningham, the Senior Epidemiologist and Climate and Health section manager at the Washington State Department of Health, said.
Later this year, the public will be able to get real time pollen data from the pollen monitoring device systems all from an app, Pollen Wise. Dr. Henning told NonStop Local that the shift to longer and more severe allergy seasons is likely going to continue increasingly. “Addressing the causes of climate change can have these… co-benefits. That would be able to reduce the severity, or at least slow down the severity of pollen season. And so, maybe the seasonal allergy seasons wouldn’t be as bad,” Dr. Henning said.
