Claire Horwell

Claire Judith Horwell is a Professor of Geohealth in the Department of Earth Sciences and Institute of Hazard, Risk and Resilience at Durham University and the founding Director of the International Volcanic Health Hazard Network (IVHHN). She studies the health hazards of natural and industrial mineral dusts.

Claire Judith Horwell
Alma materUniversity of Bristol (PhD)
Victoria University of Wellington (Dip. App. Sci. Volcanol.)
University of East Anglia (BSc Hons.)
Known forGeohealth
Volcanology
Health protection
Crystalline silica toxicity
Air pollution
Disaster risk reduction
Scientific career
InstitutionsDurham University
University of Cambridge (NERC Fellow)
University of Bristol (Leverhulme Trust Fellow)
Doctoral advisorRobert Stephen John Sparks
Websitewww.dur.ac.uk

Early life and education

Horwell became interested in volcanoes as a child[1] when she visited Mount Batur in Bali at the age of seven. Her undergraduate degree was in Environmental Science at the University of East Anglia, UK, where she studied environmental, earth and public health sciences.[1] She moved to Victoria University of Wellington for her master's degree, and studied volcanology.[1] Her research at Victoria University was based in Rotorua, an urban area where 60,000 people are exposed to geothermal emissions.[1] Horwell designed devices to measure gas emissions around the town, collecting information on hydrogen sulphide exposures and providing advice to public health experts.[1] She earned her doctorate at the University of Bristol, where she worked with Robert Stephen John Sparks supported by the Natural Environment Research Council.[2] Her PhD research focused on the characteristics of crystalline silica in volcanic ash which control its toxicity.[3][4] In 2003, Horwell founded the International Volcanic Health Hazard Network (IVHHN), which provides information on the health hazards and impacts of volcanic emissions to the general public and civil protection agencies.[5][6] She has remained as the director of the IVHHN, and has since co-created the Hawaii Interagency Vog dashboard to provide information about volcanic smog to the general public.[1][7] In 2005, Horwell joined the University of Cambridge as a NERC postdoctoral fellow.[8] She moved to Durham University in 2007 as a Research Councils UK research fellow where she is now Professor.[8][9]

Research and career

Horwell has served as an advisor to the World Health Organization, UK Cabinet Office and Public Health England.[10] She was appointed to the Government of the United Kingdom Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies for volcanic eruptions in 2015.[11] She is currently President-elect and founding leader of the American Geophysical Union's GeoHealth Section and serves on AGU's Council.

Grain size dependence of penetration of airborne particulate matter.

Horwell studies the health hazards of mineral dusts, and ways to support communities to protect themselves from inhaling particulate air pollution. She uses physicochemical analysis to establish whether or not mineral particles are harmful, as well as toxicological assessments to determine the respiratory hazards. These help her to understand the structure-toxicity relationships of minerals. She has studied how crystalline silica forms in volcanic systems such as lava domes using petrological techniques, including X-ray diffraction.[1] Crystalline silica can be a pathogen, and can result in silicosis and lung cancer. Horwell is trying to establish whether the silica in volcanic ash has the potential to cause these diseases.[1][12] Horwell worked with authorities in Hawaii to help local communities respond to the Kīlauea vog (volcanic smog) emissions. The Interagency Vog Dashboard website was accessed over 50,000/week during the 2018 lower Puna eruption.[13][14]

She has worked with the Pan American Health Organization to introduce new epidemiological protocols for use in volcanic crises and supports many governmental agencies and non-governmental organizations in Indonesia, New Zealand, Singapore, Japan and Mexico in preparing for community exposures to volcanic emissions. She created the Health Interventions in Volcanic Eruptions (HIVE) project to collect evidence on respiratory protection for communities.[15] She investigated the effectiveness of facemasks distributed by agencies during volcanic eruptions, looking to identify whether or not they could adequately filter fine-grained particles, as well as to understand the behavioural reasons why some communities may or may not wear masks, through collaborations with a range of social scientists. During this program Horwell co-developed train-the-trainer courses with the International Society for Respiratory Protection to teach people in Indonesia how to better protect themselves. Her research, with the Institute of Occupational Medicine, confirmed that N95 industry certified masks are most effective at protecting communities from inhaling volcanic ash, and that the more commonly used surgical masks offered less protection.[16]

Awards and honours

Her awards and honours include;

Selected publications

Her publications include;

  • Horwell, Claire J.; Baxter, PJ. (2006-07-01). "The respiratory health hazards of volcanic ash: a review for volcanic risk mitigation". Bulletin of Volcanology. 69 (1): 1–24. Bibcode:2006BVol...69....1H. doi:10.1007/s00445-006-0052-y. S2CID 19173052.
  • Witham, Claire S.; Horwell, Claire J. (2005-03-15). "Volcanic ash-leachates: a review and recommendations for sampling methods". Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research. 141 (3–4): 299–326. Bibcode:2005JVGR..141..299W. doi:10.1016/j.jvolgeores.2004.11.010.
  • Horwell, Claire J. (2007). "Grain-size analysis of volcanic ash for the rapid assessment of respiratory health hazard". Journal of Environmental Monitoring. 9 (10): 1107–1115. doi:10.1039/b710583p. PMID 17909645.

References
  1. "Durham Dialogue". University of Durham. 2018-06-30. Retrieved 2019-09-15.
  2. "Dr. Claire Horwell". Earth Observatory of Singapore. Retrieved 2019-09-15.
  3. Bristol, University of. "2002: The hidden hazards of volcanoes | News | University of Bristol". www.bristol.ac.uk. Retrieved 2019-09-16.
  4. Editor, By Our Health (2002-12-28). "Volcanic dust 'link to cancer'". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 2019-09-15.CS1 maint: extra text: authors list (link)
  5. ""Is it harmful to breathe this ash?" - Public health hazard assessment and protection in communities impacted by eruptions". events.manchester.ac.uk. Retrieved 2019-09-15.
  6. "About IVHHN | IVHHN". www.ivhhn.org. Retrieved 2019-09-15.
  7. "Volcanic Ash Impacts & Mitigation - About Us". volcanoes.usgs.gov. Retrieved 2019-09-15.
  8. "Prof. C J Horwell - Durham University". www.dur.ac.uk. Retrieved 2019-09-15.
  9. "» Scientific Steering Committee". Retrieved 2019-09-15.
  10. "Volcanoes and their Health Hazards - 2017 festival, The University of York". yorkfestivalofideas.com. Retrieved 2019-09-15.
  11. "Vog Information Dashboard | IVHHN". www.ivhhn.org. Retrieved 2019-09-15.
  12. Science, American Association for the Advancement of (2003-03-28). "News this Week". Science. 299 (5615): 251. ISSN 0036-8075.
  13. "Claire Horwell Wins Faculty of Science Inaugural Impact and Engagement Award - Durham University". www.dur.ac.uk. Retrieved 2019-09-15.
  14. Siegel, Ethan. "The USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory Is A Trusted Source For The Kilauea Eruption". Forbes. Retrieved 2020-05-13.
  15. "HIVE | Health Interventions in Volcanic Eruptions". community.dur.ac.uk. Retrieved 2019-09-15.
  16. "Protecting Against Volcanic Ash". www.enn.com. Retrieved 2019-09-15.
  17. "EGU announces 2020 awards and medals". egu.eu. European Geosciences Union. October 22, 2019. Retrieved January 1, 2020.
  18. "Dr Claire Horwell appointed President-elect of new AGU GeoHealth Section - Durham University". www.dur.ac.uk. Retrieved 2019-09-15.
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