Wildfire Impacts on Water Quality

Wildfires are increasing in frequency, intensity, and duration worldwide as a consequence of climate change, land-use change, and prolonged drought conditions. Although the ecological and atmospheric impacts of wildfires have been widely studied, their effects on water quality are receiving growing attention due to the significant risks they pose to aquatic ecosystems, drinking water supplies, and public health. Wildfire-induced alterations to vegetation cover and soil properties increase erosion, runoff, and sediment transport, facilitating the mobilisation of contaminants into surface and groundwater systems. Post-fire runoff can carry a wide range of pollutants, including heavy metals, nutrients, dissolved organic matter, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and emerging contaminants. These impacts may persist for years after a fire event, highlighting the need for a comprehensive understanding of wildfire–water quality interactions in a rapidly changing environment.The primary goal of this Research Topic is to advance scientific understanding of how wildfires affect water quality across diverse climatic, hydrological, and environmental settings. Despite increasing evidence that post-fire contamination can compromise ecosystem health, drinking water safety, and water treatment operations, many of the mechanisms governing contaminant generation, transport, transformation, and long-term fate remain insufficiently understood. Recent wildfire events across different regions of the world have demonstrated the vulnerability of watersheds and water supply infrastructure to both immediate and delayed contamination risks.This collection aims to bring together interdisciplinary research that investigates the sources, pathways, ecological consequences, and management implications of post-fire pollutants. By integrating field observations, laboratory experiments, modelling approaches, remote sensing technologies, and risk assessment frameworks, contributors can help identify the processes driving water quality degradation and evaluate effective monitoring, mitigation, and remediation strategies. Ultimately, the Research Topic seeks to support evidence-based decision-making that enhances water resource resilience and protects both environmental and human health under increasingly severe wildfire regimes.This Research Topic welcomes contributions that explore the links between wildfire events and water quality impacts in surface waters, groundwater systems, and drinking water supplies. Relevant themes include contaminant mobilisation and transport processes; heavy metals and trace elements; organic pollutants such as PAHs, VOCs, and endocrine-disrupting compounds; aquatic toxicology; groundwater vulnerability; impacts on drinking water treatment and distribution systems; post-fire monitoring, remote sensing, and early-warning approaches; water treatment and remediation technologies; climate change implications for the fire–water nexus; and risk assessment and governance frameworks.We encourage submissions employing field-based investigations, laboratory studies, mesocosm experiments, modelling approaches, data-driven analyses, and interdisciplinary assessments. Manuscript types of interest include Original Research Articles, Systematic Reviews, Mini Reviews, Perspectives, and other article formats accepted by Frontiers in Environmental Science. Contributions addressing both fundamental mechanisms and applied management solutions are particularly welcome. Topic editors: Miguel Angel Marazuela, Jason Kreitler, Ricardo Hideo Taniwaki Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/84306/wildfire-impacts-on-water-quality