Temporal and spatial variation in personal ambient temperatures for outdoor working populations in the southeastern USA

Margaret M. Sugg, Christopher M. Fuhrmann, Jennifer D. Runkle

Excessive ambient temperature exposure can result in significant morbidity and mortality, especially among vulnerable occupational groups like outdoor workers. Average temperatures in the USA are projected to increase in frequency and intensity, placing future worker populations at greater risk for unhealthy levels of exposure. Unlike previous research focused on aggregate-level temperature exposures from in situ weather station data, this study will measure location-based personal ambient temperatures (PAT) at the individual-level by piloting the use of wearable sensor technology. A total of 66 outdoor workers in three geographically and climatologically diverse regions in the Southeast USA were continuously sampled during the workday for a 1-week period throughout July 11 to August 8 2016. Results indicate significant worker variation in temperature exposure within and between study locations; with PAT characterized by less pronounced variability as workers moved between indoor and outdoor environments. Developed land covers, a factor often associated with higher temperatures, were poorly correlated with PAT. Future analysis should focus on a worker's physiological response to PAT and mapping of spatial patterns of PAT for a larger worker population to produce innovative and targeted heat prevention programs.