Outdoor Fire Pits and Fireplaces: More Second-Hand Smoke

Science - Outdoor Fire pits and Fireplaces
Special Report: Outdoor Fire Pits and Fireplaces: More Second-Hand Smoke
"http://burningissues.org"

Outdoor fire pits and fireplaces are a growing pollution source all over the United States. They are popular and inexpensive items at many retail stores. What is not inexpensive is the cost of wood smoke pollution: every pound of wood burned costs society $2.00 in health expense (Hall-Fairley). We are receiving more and more reports from victims all over the country and even in such an unexpected places as Key West, Florida.

There is no safe place or time of year that vulnerable people can avoid this deadly pollution. These open fire pits expose the owners and their guests to even more pollution than a fireplace or tobacco smoke. (Each fire will emit close to one pound of smoke pollution, with 90% being in the deadly smaller than one micron range.)

There have been all kinds of excuses made to justify wood heat that have obscured the facts that as many as 30,000 Americans could prematurely die each year from wood smoke inhalation and that "wood smoke could produce similar effects on p53, phospho-p53, and MDM2 protein expression in the human genes as tobacco. It is important to consider wood smoke exposure as a possible risk factor for the development of lung cancer in nonsmoker subjects (Barclay-Delgado)."

What we know about the dangers of tobacco smoke well applies to wood smoke. Wood smoke is chemically active in the body 40 times longer than tobacco smoke (Pryor). It is 12 times more carcinogenic than tobacco smoke (Lewtas) and lowers the body's defense mechanisms for fighting off infections. Just one hour of exposure can lower immune defense 25 to 40 percent (Zelikoff). (See burningissues.org for Fact Sheets, Wood Smoke/Tobacco Comparison charts and other backup material.)

In underdeveloped countries it is recognized that outdoor fires significantly shorten the average human life span. It seems foolish to consider wood fires as a lifestyle enhancement. Users of these devices are making an unfortunate health choice for the whole community. The perception is that these are perfectly legal and desirable lifestyle-enhancing devices.

There have been pure air rights, laws and edicts on the law books since very early times that protect people from smoke, vapors, odors and gases. Where is our common sense to step forward and educate the public about the dangers of wood smoke and ban gratuitous polluting devices?

The time to act is now. Educate your town council, your air district, your neighbors. Use the 35 megabytes of scientific information on our site for free by giving out the web site: "http://burningissues.org"