Chemist: wood smoke is 'really nasty'

Chemist: wood smoke is 'really nasty'
Special to the Spectator

http://www.thespec.com/News/Local/article/366455

May 09, 2008
The Hamilton Spectator
(May 9, 2008)

McMaster University chemist Brian McCarry says the toxic content of smoke from fireplaces and old-fashioned wood stoves is similar to that of diesel exhaust and tobacco smoke.

"The chemical composition of wood smoke, especially from low-temperature fires, is really nasty," said McCarry, who is chair of Clean Air Hamilton. "It's no different from cigarette smoke in particle size, and the loading of methylated polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) is about the same.

"There's no question it has a health impact," he said, commenting on a recent court ruling that held a Niagara couple responsible for $270,000 in damages and legal costs for blanketing their neighbours' yard with smoke from a wood-burning stove in their garage.

"The message from Clean Air Hamilton is that wood smoke is as big a danger as any other combustion source. Because it is considered natural, it is considered benign, but it's really a very dirty energy source."

A Health Canada fact sheet says wood smoke "contains a number of pollutants that can be harmful to your health," including cancer-causing dioxins.

"Exposure to the pollutants in wood smoke can cause eye, nose and throat irritation, headaches, nausea and dizziness. Wood smoke can also make asthma worse, and has been associated with an increase in respiratory problems. In addition, studies of laboratory animals suggest that prolonged exposure to wood smoke may weaken the immune system."

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says breathing wood smoke is not healthy for anyone, but:

* "If you have heart or lung disease, such as congestive heart failure, angina, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, emphysema or asthma, you may experience health effects earlier and at lower smoke levels than healthy people.

* "Older adults are more likely to be affected by smoke, possibly because they are more likely to have chronic heart or lung diseases than younger people.

* "Children also are more susceptible to smoke for several reasons; their respiratory systems are still developing; they breathe more air (and air pollution) per pound of body weight than adults, and they're more likely to be active outdoors."

http://www.thespec.com/News/Local/article/366455