Canadian Clean Air Alliance-website

Canadian Clean Air Alliance

Who are we?

We are Canadians that have come together to fight for the right to
breathe clean air in our house, yard and neighbourhoods.
We are against residential wood smoke and odour from all wood burning appliances - stoves, fireplaces, furnaces and all outdoor burning. We are against all wood burning pollution!

Mission Statement

Our intention is to educate the public about the grave health hazards to human life and the severe effects that wood burning has on global warming. We strive to protect Canadians from the health hazards, pollution, nuisance and interruption to normal daily life from all residential wood burning smoke and odour both indoors and outside.

We are the voice that will stand up for Canadians and work towards getting bylaws and bans in place to protect all of us from this grave health hazard.
"A voice in the dark is never heard until someone listens"

http://www.canadiancleanairalliance.ca/index.html

Visit this great website!

A Mother's Plea

A Mother’s Plea
March 10, 2009

Dear Environment Enhancement Committee Members,

Recently my daughter was diagnosed with cancer; the third episode within a decade.
She has an active life which includes plenty of fresh air and exercise, wholesome foods and she is not dependent on cigarettes or alcohol. She occupies an apartment in New Westminster and since she is a firm believer in fresh air, a window is always open.

During most of my visits during Fall, Winter or Spring, I was aware of a smoke smell which I compared to that of burning wood fireplaces so during my presence the windows would be closed because I had become sensitive to wood smoke.

About 7 months ago I decided to do research as to the harmful effects of fireplace smoke emissions on people’s health. Reading the information provided by UBC and BC Lung Association I learned that fireplace smoke does contain more than 100 chemicals and numerous toxic substances which are linked to many diseases including cancer.

Also, thickening of the blood vessels that are a risk factor to stroke and heart attacks. It also increases the rate of ear infection and even short term exposure shows increased incidence of cardiac arrhythmia (irregular heart rhythm).

A study on lab animals suggests that prolonged exposure to wood smoke may weaken the immune system and I ask ―Is that the reason for the multitude of allergy sufferers? And, in my daughter’s case, is she a cancer victim because of wood smoke exposure for 23 years from neighbouring fireplaces?

It is my understanding that these toxic substances do penetrate dwellings even with windows closed and put people at risk.

Upon contacting the Environmental Enhancement Committee of my municipality, Port Coquitlam, I was informed that a regional approach is preferred.

Up to now Metro Vancouver has not been successful in convincing the public of the harmful effects on people’s health from Wood Burning and is still trying to educate them. A stove exchange program is in force. I do understand this to be necessary for individuals who are dependent on wood as their only source of fuel. But, in our highly populated Metro Vancouver area where weather conditions are not exactly of a 5 star rating, I feel that it would be in the best interest of all living and breathing beings to simply ban the use of Wood Burning.

Authorities will just have to take a stand on this issue, and put their foot down, so to speak.

As I have been in contact with our federal and provincial Government on this issue, their reply to me was, that it falls under the jurisdiction of municipalities.
I am aware that toxins from wood burning are only part of the pollution problem, but it is that part which is easily cleared up. It will not have a negative effect on the economy either, and wood burning fireplaces can be easily replaced by a Gas burning one.

Banning Wood Burning Fireplaces should not be looked upon as taking away someone’s privilege to enjoy a roaring fire, but to be considered as an improvement of our air quality. That is, what all of us are striving to achieve, correct?

Will you therefore please join me and seriously consider the positive effect a ban on Wood Burning Fireplaces will have on people’s health and no longer will harm any ones child! A mother’s heart thanks you!

Brie Oishi
Port Coquitlam, B.C.

From----The Wood Smoke Activist
December Newsletter
Educating the world about the health and climate impacts of wood smoke and combustion aerosols.
Editor: Shirley Brandie
12/1/2009

Got Smoke?

Got Smoke?

By Dan Stih
This month’s Bozo Award goes to the Forest Service for "controlled burns". The flames might be under control but the air quality sure isn't. Do they realize they are literally killing people?

I measured 4,000,000 particles 0.3 micron in size or larger in Santa Fe during the controlled burns, a record high for me since I started using the instrument almost 10 years ago, measuring particulate levels in several states and large cities like Phoenix. Most people's air purifiers are good enough to protect people from these small particles. Studies find more people go to the hospital (some die) when small particles pass through their lungs, enter the blood stream, reach their heart and reek havoc with their body. Some die, never realizing the culprit was poor air quality.

Are controlled burns worth it? In May 2000, citizens held their breath as raging fires encroached upon the town of Los Alamos. The fires were not the result of a cigarette butt or lightning - they were set by the National Park Service. The disaster burned 47,000 acres and hundreds of homes.
If we can't quit for our own health, do it for pets. Smoke from fires is 12x worse for our health than cigarette smoke. According to Ron Davis, president of the American Medical Association "Dogs whose owners smoke are more likely to get lung cancer and cats are more likely to get feline lymphoma". Cited in Indoor Environment Connections (http://www.ieconnections.com ).

Dan Stih Author, Healthy Living Spaces: Top 10 Hazards Affecting Your Health
President, Healthy Living Spaces LLC Council-certified Microbial Consultant
Council-certified Indoor Environmental Consultant
Board-awarded by the American Indoor Air Quality Council
Chapter Director, The Indoor Air Quality Association, Santa Fe
Healthy Living Spaces
369 Montezuma Ave #169 Santa Fe, New Mexico 87501
tel: 505.992.9904
fax: 505.992.9744 email: dan@healthylivingspaces.com website: www.HealthyLivingSpaces.com

From----The Wood Smoke Activist
December Newsletter
Educating the world about the health and climate impacts of wood smoke and combustion aerosols.
Editor: Shirley Brandie
12/1/2009

Flyer Distributed to Canadians-Cornwall, Ontario

Webmaster note: The following is a flyer distributed to over 2000 people in Cornwall, Ontario, Canada, and other nearby towns. We congratulate the Air is Precious grass-roots organization for its great effort on behalf of all Canadians that want woodsmoke-free air to breathe.


BREATHE HEALTHY AIR
Air Is Precious. So is every breathe we take.

ALL Canadians deserve the right to breathe healthy air woodsmoke free.

WE all should live without our air being polluted with woodsmoke.

CHILDHOOD asthma rates are soaring. We must protect them.

A quote from Deitrich Bonheffer says it all:
“The test of the morality of a society is what it does for its children”

WE all deserve the right to protect our family from harm caused by woodsmoke emissions. Fine (PM2.5) is a silent killer!

LIVES are being destroyed across Canada daily because of toxic pollution from deadly Woodsmoke emissions (PM2.5). Your family is at risk.

WE all deserve to live in a woodsmoke free community.

WE should not have our property rights violated by wood burners.

LIVING beside a burner makes it difficult to sell your home.

YOU cannot stop toxic woodsmoke from entering your home by closing your windows and doors.

YOU cannot prevent toxic particulate matter from entering deeply into your lungs when you breathe it.

WE must join together across Canada to end toxic Woodsmoke pollution!

If you agree, contact: e-mail airisprecious@gmail.com
Air Is Precious Coalition
975 Brookdale Avenue
P.O. Box 22049
Cornwall, Ontario
K6J 4P5

SEE THESE WEBSITES:

Breathe Healthy Air http://breathehealthyair.blogspot.com/

Canadian Clean Air Alliance http://www.canadiancleanairalliance.ca

Clean Air Revival http://burningissues.org/

Legal:Wood Smoke and the Americans With Disabilities Act

Successful ADA Complaint Leads to Permanent Open Burning Ban: Iowa: 1996

On Dec. 24, 1996 a permanent injunction was issued to ban all open burning in the City of Mallard, Iowa as a result of a federal Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) Title II complaint. U.S. District Court Judge Mark W. Bennett, of the Northern District of Iowa, Central Division, issued the injunction after finding the rights of a 2 year old girl with severe respiratory and cardiac conditions were be violated by the city because of the city's allowance of open burning.

The smoke aggravated the child's condition and posed a threat to her health and therefore presented a physical barrier that did not allow her use of the public parks and streets. This is a precedent setting case of an ADA complaint due to leaf burning. Attorneys may contact Blake Parker, the successful attorney in this case at 515-955-2193 for more information.To date almost 200 ADA Title II complaints have been filed with the U.S. Dept. of the Interior against over 70 municipalities in Illinois and other Midwestern states.

What are ADA rules and regulations? Here is information published in the AARP Newspaper April, 2003 from the "Ask Our Experts" column.

Q. "Public places are required by law to be accessible to disabled people. As a disabled person, where can I lodge a complaint if I encounter a problem?"

A. The U.S. Department of Justice enforces the federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which requires that public places be accessible to disabled people. The Justice Department accepts written complaints and has specific requirements about the information it needs. To learn more, call the ADA information line at (800) 514-0301 or go to www.usdoj.gov/crt/ada/t3compfm.htm

Under Title III of the ADA, most businesses and service providers-everything from hotels and restaurants to office buildings, hospitals and schools-are considered public accommodations. Title III also permits individuals to enforce their rights in court."


From...http://burningissues.org/car-www/legal/ada.html

Judge prohibits outdoor wood boiler

Judge prohibits outdoor wood boiler in Henrietta Township dispute
by Fredricka Paul | Jackson Citizen Patriot
Friday May 22, 2009, 11:23 PM

A lengthy dispute between Henrietta Township neighbors was resolved this week, resulting in one family not being allowed to use an outdoor wood boiler.

Circuit Court Judge Chad Schmucker ruled that Richard and Julia Cady cannot use the wood boiler, which he believes was a nuisance and health hazard to neighbors.

The Cadys represented themselves in the civil trial in which they were sued by the Jackson County Health Department.

Wood boilers, increasingly popular in rural areas as energy costs rise, transfer heat through water lines from an outside structure to a home for both space and water heating.

The judge also prohibited Cady from incinerating trash, debris and other materials in backyard burn barrels.

Schmucker said the Cadys did not break any laws and that the boiler was properly installed but produces smoke, which can be a nuisance to neighbors.

Richard Soldano, 53, testified he started having headaches in 2003, before Cady built his home, because Cady frequently burned garbage in barrels on his property.

Since then, he's had chest pain and trouble breathing after being outside when the wood boiler is operating.

Soldano's wife has had a chronic cough, and Soldano said he has asthma and a chronic lung condition. Doctors have attributed the conditions to smoke inhalation and warned against the dangers of breathing smoke.

"We are very pleased. It is what we asked the court to do," said Bob Grover, the lawyer for the health department. "I hope it finally resolves problems between neighbors that have been going on for five to six years. I am not optimistic, but hopeful."

— Reporter Danielle Quisenberry contributed to this report.

Outdoor Burning Banned-No Outdoor Woodburning-Elmira, New York!!

City of Elmira New York
Fire Department

September 28,2009

Letter received by...Founder, Air is Precious Coalition


It was a pleasure speaking to you. Thank you for your kind words and encouragement.

Let me give you the history behind our open burning ordinance. In the 1980's, our county government banned open burning throughout our county. As years passed, their inability to enforce those regulations led them to abolish the law. At that time, our city created a local ordinance to continue the restrictions on open burning.

As with any law that is enacted, loopholes began to crop up. When I became the Fire Marshal in 1994, we rewrote the ordinance to close these loopholes and the ordinance was updated again in 2004 to include chimineas.

With the popularity of chimineas and fire pits, the need for enforcement was increased. The main issue isn't so much that people can't utilize these safely, but the fact that in a neighborhood setting, the emissions from these devices is an intrusion upon the right of others to enjoy their property. If you can't open windows in your home because of smoke entering your home in the heat of summer, then your health and safety is at risk.

As you will notice, part (B) of section 9-1 of our ordinance speaks directly to the pollution issue. We do allow the use of these devices if they are fueled by natural gas, propane or charcoal; fuels that produce no smoke issues for others.

We do not receive a lot of complaints now, but when we do, an engine company will respond. They notify the individual that they need to extinguish their fire and if they do not cooperate, our crew will extinguish it. A Fire Report is generated and if we receive another complaint, a violation notice is generated which caries a penalty of a $250 fine or 15 days in jail or both. I think we both agree that it does not matter where we live, the right to breathe clean air should be a right that is guaranteed to all of us. This tool is an effective way of ensuring this.

I have enclosed a copy of our ordinance and a business card should you need to contact me in the future.

Again, thank you for the kind words which makes it easier to do a difficult job.

Sincerely,

William R. Wheeler
Fire Marshal
WRW:hm
Enclosures

Boulder's Dirty Little Secret---Up in Wood Smoke

September 15, 2009
Boulder's Dirty Little Secret
Up in Wood Smoke

By KAREN KORENOSKI and MICHAEL YATES

Residents of Boulder, Colorado take pride in the city’s livability. The town has won “more accolades than any other city in America for its recreation, culture, health, business climate, and overall quality of life.” It has been voted “Number One Best Place to Live” and “Best Overall Place to Live”; it is among “The Best Small Cities” and the “Top Ten Places to Retire”; it is “Number Four Heart Healthiest City”; it is in the “Top Ten of World’s Greener Cities”; it is a city that is “Making a Difference in the Environment”; and it is in the “Top 20 Greenest Spots in the Country.” We have lived in Boulder for eight months, and we can attest that it is beautiful. Unfortunately, the city’s “accolades” neglect a dirty little secret.

We moved to Boulder from Tucson, Arizona after one of us underwent major surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy. We have always been concerned about the environment, but such a serious illness made us more so. Tucson was just too polluted, congested, hot, and stressful to stay. So we looked for a place that was the “anti-Tucson.” Boulder seemed to fill the bill. We could decompress from months of trauma and begin to rebuild our lives.

We rented a downtown apartment in February, on the top floor of an office building.
It was removed enough from the main street to be quiet, a bonus in a college town. From our bedroom window we could see Mt. Sanitas; from our balcony we could admire the spectacular western sky over the eastern plains. If we turned right from the building’s front doors, we could walk to steep and challenging hiking trails that led up into the foothills of the Rocky Mountains; if we turned left, we could enjoy the shops, bookstores, restaurants, and street musicians of the traffic-free Pearl Street Mall. It looked like we had found the perfect place to heal.

The first sign that something was amiss happened a few days after we signed our lease. We noticed a plume of black smoke coming from a chimney on a roof directly below our patio. It turned out that we were next door to a restaurant that used a wood-burning oven, something that the landlord failed to tell us. A few months later, a second wood-burning restaurant opened, with its chimneys on an adjacent roof.

Our dream apartment turned into a nightmare. Every day, beginning in early morning, smoke from the ovens rises in steady plumes above the chimneys. This goes on, with the occasional break, for nearly twelve hours, seven days a week. The smell is so obnoxious that we cannot open windows or use our balcony, and it is so strong that it often permeates our living quarters. Our noses are runny; our throats are sore and scratchy; and we have a hard time breathing.

The two restaurants we have come to despise are named The Kitchen and Salt. Like many businesses in Boulder and quite a few other restaurants, these eateries claim to reflect Boulder’s refined environmental consciousness. The Kitchen says on its website: “The Kitchen believes in protecting our environment. Wind power provides 100 percent of the restaurant's electricity and we recycle or reuse nearly 100 percent of our discards. All of our paper products and straws are biodegradable. We give the remaining uncooked food and open bottles of wine to our staff at the end of each shift and all of our food discards are composted and often find their way back to the farms they came from.” This eatery has garnered many awards and citations for its commitment to the environment: “West’s Greenest Restaurant” (Sunset magazine, 2008) and Number 6 in “Top 10 Best Eco-friendly Restaurants” (Bon Appetit, 2008). It prominently displays a PACE decal in its window (Boulder County’s Partners for a Clean Environment).

Salt has joined the environmental bandwagon. One reviewer gushed about Salt’s love for Mother Earth: “. . . Salt will walk the sustainability talk,” he says, “. . . [doing] all the little things The Kitch[en] does so well.” Salt’s chef described himself to another reviewer as “Johnny Local,” referring to his use of local organic farm produce. “We’re doing fun, affordable, simple, seasonal food and supporting those who do right by Mother Nature. . . . We’re taking our food away from corporate greed and making good choices by buying as much as we can on a local level.” (This is amusing given that, as one blogger put it, “word on the street is that Salt’s . . .well-established Boulder area chef, and his team of investors, put in a million dollars in their renovation . . . .”---none of this in search of profit, we are to suppose).

While restaurant wood smoke has damaged our quality of life, it is doing much more than this. It is, in fact, a definite and well-established danger to the public’s health. A few examples will suffice. First, wood smoke contains numerous toxic substances, many of which are also found in tobacco smoke. A few of these are chlorinated dioxin, carbon monoxide, methane, volatile organic compounds, nitrogen oxides, and fine particulate matter. Second, some wood smoke components are known carcinogens, including benzene, formaldehyde, and toluene. A google search of “wood smoke and cancer” yields thousands of entries. Third, wood smoke is definitely correlated with many other diseases and health problems, such as asthma, allergies, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), high blood pressure, strokes, and heart attacks, just to name a few. Children, the elderly, and people with existing lung and other diseases are especially susceptible to the harm done by wood smoke. Wood smoke “should be actively avoided” by such persons, according to the American Lung Association. Fourth, exposure to wood smoke can weaken the immune system, making us more susceptible to disease and weakening our ability to recover from both diseases and treatments such as cancer therapies.

Irony and hypocrisy abound here. These restaurants do not allow smoking. Yet, wood smoke is more dangerous to health than cigarette smoke; it penetrates deeply into the lungs and takes more time to dissipate in the air. It is chemically active in the body forty times longer than tobacco smoke. One study showed that a restaurant that burned wood but was nonsmoking was similar in terms of pollution to a restaurant without wood-burning equipment but which allowed smoking. The chefs claim to be concerned with the environment; one local reviewer has called businesspersons like them “greenpreneurs.” Yet, their kitchen equipment spews dangerous particulate matter into the air hour after hour, year-round (and we won’t even go into how the health of the kitchen workers and patrons is affected by the wood-burning ovens, grills, and rotisseries, or the sources of all those truckloads of wood). The owner of the building that houses one of the restaurants is a rich and generous philanthropist who donated millions of dollars for the building of a first-class cancer center in Boulder. How is it that he can condone the releasing of carcinogenic smoke into the town’s atmosphere? We spoke with him, and he seemed oblivious to the problem.

We know that, other things equal, wood smoke raises the mortality rate. As researcher Peter Montague tells us, "To summarize bluntly, any increase in fine particles in the atmosphere kills someone. The victims remain nameless, but they have been deprived of life all the same." Tens of thousands of people in the United States die every year from particulate pollution, to which wood smoke is an important contributor. Worldwide, the World Heath Organization estimates that there are nearly three million premature deaths worldwide from exposure to wood smoke.

We have complained to public officials in Boulder, and while some have not even bothered to return our calls (one is the city’s Environmental Affairs Manager), others have done what they could. One agency asked The Kitchen to clean its word-burning equipment so that the emitted smoke met the city’s opacity requirement. However, in the absence of a prohibition of the use of wood-burning devices, something that England enacted in 1956, Boulder cannot prevent their use, which means that heath-debilitating smoke will continue to permeate the city’s air. Besides The Kitchen and Salt, there are at least half a dozen more restaurants that use wood-burning equipment, all in an area about one mile square. We have begun to publicize the dangers as best we can and will continue to do so, in the hope that sooner or later citizen complaints will generate official action.

Peasants in poor countries cut down trees for wood fires to heat their homes and cook their food. This does tremendous damage to the environment. The peasants suffer disproportionately from the smoke-induced health problems described above; there is even a name for one infection common among them--“hut lung”). The deforestation that provides the wood makes their surroundings more susceptible to floods, mudslides, and drought. However, those who cut down the trees and burn the wood are desperately poor and have no real choice in the matter. Our restaurateurs, on the other hand, do have perfectly viable and probably cheaper choices. They do not have to use wood-burning appliances. We cannot think of a single justification for them. We doubt that many patrons could tell the wood-smoked food from any other. And even supposing that food cooked with a wood fire tasted marginally better, so what? The taste differential cannot possibly justify using wood when there are such obvious health hazards. What excuse is there for Boulder or any other city to continue to allow restaurants to employ this dirty, dangerous, and unnecessary cooking practice?

Karen Korenoski and Michael Yates live in Boulder. They can be reached at mikedjyates@msn.com.

The health information in this essay is taken from the many sources listed on the excellent website http://www.burningissues.org.

(Posted on Counter Punch http://www.counterpunch.org/yates09152009.html)

The Ideal Community

UNLESS otherwise noted, these letters are to be considered unedited. The opinions expressed in the letters and comments are those of the writers and not of The London Free Press.

The Ideal Community..almost. Some of us think about the community we live in and wonder if it is the ideal community, the best community, to raise our families and live our daily lives with safety, security, peace of mind, and has a healthy environment.

The ideal community could be an urban setting: the excitement of the city, museums, fine dining, shopping, and the night life. For others, it may be smaller communities, with quaint book shops, old cobblestone streets, exquisitely crafted churches, and a place where they actually know you by name, not a number.

But, in many communities, small or large, we do not have the safety and security of a healthy environment. Many of us live where we are assaulted by toxic emissions of deadly woodsmoke. Usually it is from an open burning. It could be from your neighbour next door who is using their outdoor wood burning fireplace or fire pit. What we do know is that woodsmoke is destroying the quality of our life. Deadly particulate matter (PM2.5) finds it ways into our homes and into our lungs attacking each of us and harming Everything around us. Our ideal community has become less than ideal. Woodsmoke is deadly and destructive.

There is only one way to bring about change. That is to ban woodsmoke in every community across Canada.

Never would you want to settle for anything less in your own community, nor would you place your children in harm's way, so why would you allow this danger from woodsmoke to take place? Take a stand now! Not only must our municipalities start to make this change, but so must we. We have a voice and our collective voices must be heard. End woodsmoke from destroying our community.

Fire marshal: Wood smoke more than a nuisance — it's illegal

Fire marshal: Wood smoke more than a nuisance — it's illegal


If you live in Elmira (New York), you don't have to put up with the smell of your neighbor's wood smoke drifting through your house.

That's the word from Fire Marshal William Wheeler, who reminds city residents that free-standing outdoor fire pits and chimeneas -- front-loading fireplaces or ovens with a bulbous body and vertical smoke vent or chimney -- are illegal if they are wood-burning.

Those that are fueled by natural gas, propane or charcoal, however, are allowed because they are smoke-free, he said.

Smoke pollution is the main issue, and since the chimneys are usually 6 to 8 feet from the ground, there is going to be a pollution problem, he said.

Wood smoke is not just a nuisance. For people with medical problems like asthma, bronchitis or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, it can be a health hazard, he said.

"It's not that we don't believe that responsible people can have a fire in a fire pit with a screened cover on it and do it safely. The idea is that the neighbor next door can't open his bedroom windows," Wheeler said. "We're not out in the country."

Open burning has always been pretty much prohibited in the city, he said.

The fire prevention section in the city code of ordinances was changed in 2004 because it became apparent the city was experiencing an influx of outdoor wood-burning devices that mostly did not follow air pollution requirements as regular wood stoves do, he said.

"Every once in a while, we have them," he said. "We know that there's a lot more of them out there than we know about, obviously."

When an open burning complaint is received, an engine company will be sent out to educate the violators about the ordinance banning open burning, and the violators will be asked to put out the fire.

"If they choose not to, we will extinguish it," Wheeler said.

If they get called back to the same property a second time for a similar situation, then a citation will be issued. The penalty is up to 15 days in jail and a $250 fine, he said.

To report a problem with open burning in the city, call 737-5654.

Burning---Thoughts from Canada

Burning…

A smoky haze engulfs our Earth

We watch, perched atop a mountain, like an eagle

We dare not soar into its plume

We seek the current that sweeps us higher from this doom

Away from flame and smoke and dread

I circle as I watch the dead

They were warned and they were told

From those who stood so strong and bold

But sadly they did listen not

To them came the death they sought.

Of each struggle for a breath

Some fought more and some fought less

But death still came as they watched in fear

Loss of life as they shed a tear

But even those were lost in heat

As the wind did swirl beneath their feet

Their spirits soared and their lone souls weeped

And as the planet was set on fire

Our world became a funeral pyre.


Note....Dedicated to those who know and believe that woodsmoke will and has prematurely caused the death of millions on this Earth. That is why we must fight on…or millions more will continue to die.


Author==Linda from Canada

Yard fire ban a no-brainer-Letter to the Editor-London Free Press

Letter to Editor-London Free Press

(UNLESS otherwise noted, these letters are to be considered unedited. The opinions expressed in the letters and comments are those of the writers and not of The London Free Press)

Environment

Yard fire ban a no-brainer

I agree wholeheartedly with Alan Gibson's letter Ban backyard burning (Aug. 5).

There is far more pollution from backyard fires. There have been many nights we could not enjoy open windows or sitting outside because of acrid smells of burning. I have respiratory problems and understand how it is to breathe in this stench. One morning I woke to find my car covered in ashes from someone's fire.

Please ban all fires in backyards. In densely populated areas, it should be a no-brainer. Sparks from these fires also can start other fires. Common sense should rule.



POSTED BY: W.T. Welsh, London
POSTED ON: August 7, 2009

EDITORS NOTE: As published in The London Free Press on Aug. 7, 2009.

Air is Precious-New Canadian Coalition to fight wood smoke

Air is Precious

Note...This is a new coalition (August,2009) fighting wood smoke in Canada.

Contact....

airisprecious@gmail.com

Air is Precious
975 Brookdale Avenue
P.O. Box 22049
Cornwall, Ontario
K6J 4P5

MISSION STATEMENT: To end Woodsmoke in our communities and thus ensure we each have the right to breathe healthy air.


All I want to do is my very best to represent you and others fighting for the human right and common decency to breathe air without wood smoke. Air is Precious sincerely hopes, and I hope, what we can do here will at some point touch someone and make them realize and understand what a toxic issue this woodsmoke is to all.

None of us know how much time we have here on Earth, and I feel that is why it is so important to do our best each hour, to be kind, to show we care, to reach out to others, and want to try our very best in life. Those suffering from wood smoke need our help...now.

I only know one way to write and that is from my heart, from my honesty. I only want my efforts (with your help) to help save many from the ills of wood smoke. Sometimes a person can call from their own experiences to write, and then do. There is a different kind of connection with others. I know what wood smoke can do to a person, a family, a neighborhood.

From our small dining area, I look out to a nice patio area, all trees, flowers..calming. There are water fountains with that soothing sound, and in the fall it is simply breathtaking to see the carpet of yellow leaves. Because we are so closed in, that part has developed a micro climate of its own, so things stay greener longer. When all the leaves fall, it is truly so pretty, and I don't take them up. Not till the last, then compost them. In the winter we have Christmas lights all over in the back. Again, it is a pretty spot to look. It is very easy for me to write there. Sadly though, I also see the wood smoke there. What an odd mix...beauty, sky, trees. Then this killer plume of smoke drifts down.

I know this may not end for a long time (this end to woodsmoke), but I also know if I (and you) do not fight, then how will it ever stop? If I do not fight, then why should others do all the work for me. One day, I know in my heart, this unnecessary, unneeded, and unwanted wood smoke will end. Then people will be able to live their lives no longer in fear of wood smoke, but be able to breathe healthy air.

I will have the humble honour of saying one day, I knew these people, these other crusaders. I stood and did battle along side them. They gave me strength on bad days. They stood for goodness, courage, wisdom, and conviction. They saved the life of your child, your future grandchildren...and perhaps even themselves. They, of course, are you and me working to reach our goal of a wood smoke free environment.

I hope we are successful to reach our goal before I leave this Earth. But, if not, I will know that you joined and fought beside me, and battled to end woodsmoke in our communities. By doing so, we will ensure everybody has the human right and common decency to breathe air without wood smoke...and because the Air is Precious.


Contact....

airisprecious@gmail.com

Air is Precious
975 Brookdale Avenue
P.O. Box 22049
Cornwall, Ontario
K6J 4P5

A Plea to Canadian Councilors-Ban wood burning

The Wood Smoke Activist

August Newsletter

Educating the world about the health and climate impacts of wood smoke and combustion aerosols.

Editor: Shirley Brandie ...s.brandie@sympatico.ca
Co-Editor: Julie Mellum... info@takebacktheair.com
8/1/2009

See---http://woodburnersmoke.net/

A Plea to Canadian Councilors

Please consider banning wood burning in city limits. Citizens who burn solid fuels in any form including pellets or the best seasoned wood still produce unacceptable amounts of smoke. The best available sources of heat in order are activity, more layers of clothes, electricity, and natural gas. Burning wood is way down the list of acceptable sources of heat. Research shows that burning wood is 25% of the air quality problem in Prince George and is worst during the cold weather inversions of winter.

Wood is plainly out of date and unacceptable. Take a referendum about burning wood in our city and I am sure that the majority will agree to ban wood. So why do so many politicians have a blind heart on this issue? Maybe they are not convinced of the dangers to health. Are wood burners more aggressive by nature and to be feared? Are citizens who butt out and care for others to be ignored? Is smoke ignored because the effects on health are long term? Are there more pressing issues than a little bit of smoke?

There are many sources where one can learn about the dangers of wood smoke. There are many sites on the internet with stories of abuse. Just because many of us do not live right beside an abusive wood burner does not mean that we should not care. For Prince George I have written over 100 letters on air quality and often they just seem to get a few wood burners upset.

Please check out www.pachapg.ca in the Opinion section. The main issue for Prince George that affects our global reputation is air quality. We should ban wood burning to set an example.

Vic Steblin
BSc Honours Math, MA Math Education from UBC
Currently teaching math in a secondary school in Prince George, B.C.

Note....Please contact the editors above to receive the complete August 2009 Newsletter.

Canadians are fighting also to breathe air free of wood smoke!!!

Canadians are fighting also to breathe air free of wood smoke!!!
Posted July 17, 2009


I live in St.Andrews, New Brunswick, Canada and have been fighting with my town to put a ban on all bonfires and fires of any kind.

I have what the doctors call allergic rhinitis and extreme sensitivity to environmental pollutants. When exposed to smoke I develop a chronic cough, nasal congestion, migraine headache, weak voice and swollen larynx which makes breathing extremely difficult. I have been advised to avoid any smoke , if not serious consequences such as respiratory distress and allergic reaction will occur. There are no medications or other options to help me in this matter.

The doctors told me after a whole year with no voice and being in severe pain in high school (12 years ago) what was wrong and to avoid smoke at all cost and I would be fine. At this moment in time my larynx have been swollen and I have had a severe sore throat. I have been like this for 7 days now. I have had meetings with the town, an interview with the local paper and CTV NEWS Atlantic.

The town says they are trying to help me on this matter but their way of helping is just to let the fires continue. There is a by-law in affect that says people can have bonfires as long as they use clean wood and a fire pit and as long as it does not cause a Hazard to a persons.

They basically told me on Monday at the town meeting I had with them that even though it is causing a Hazard to me there is nothing they can do.

I have been fighting this battle for 7-8 years. My husband and I grew up here and it wasn't until got married and built our house in the community that the burning of bonfires began. The only place it used to be was at the campground now it is in everyone's back yard.

We also, like you Mr. Kusmit, have a major problem with the smoke from chimneys coming into our home. Our house is only 8 years old and is totally sealed properly and the smoke still floats around the house in the yard. We have an air exchanger and have been forced to close it off in the winter and most of the spring, summer and fall. I felt like I was reading part of my own story while reading Mr. Kusmit's story (see previous Breathe Healthy Air web site postings) about the smoke at the doors. Sometimes the smoke is so thick outside our home it looks like a house is on fire.

Even in New Brunswick, Canada it seems to be hard to get anything done to help those of us with Severe allergies or what not. I am a very healthy person and I am never sick until the smoke hits me.

I hope all of you and I also can somehow win this battle whether we are in Canada or the USA. This really needs to end.

Thank You,
St.Andrews, New Brunswick, Canada

The Bill for Wood Smoke

The Bill for Wood Smoke
Written by -- Victor Steblin Prince George, B.C.
Tuesday, 03 March 2009

A letter to the editor ended with: “The next time you want to complain about my wood-burning stove, I will hand you my gas bill so you can pay it.”

In response, I will keep complaining about the smoke from wood stoves until more stop burning wood. I also truly apologize if some burners intend on increasing their output just to make trouble. Consider the bill to taxpayers for the damage of wood smoke, some of which are listed in the following.

The health costs of wood smoke have been roughly calculated in the U.S. at about $2 per kilogram of wood burned. A study from Vancouver in 2007 further estimates the health effects of wood smoke as $20,000 per heater per year.

Currently this is ultimately covered by the taxpayer and goes for medical services. If wood burners were taxed this cost directly, they would quickly switch to natural gas as natural gas is much cheaper and less dangerous.

Some costs are very difficult to put numbers on. What is the cost of fresh air? What is the cost of relieving asthma in a child other than moving out of the Bowl? What is the cost of feeling good about the air quality of Prince George? What is the cost of good relations with neighbors?

Burning wood is very expensive when one considers all the hidden costs to society. The ones who burn wood just transfer the health cost to others, much like drunk drivers transfer injury to others. And by many accounts, the results of wood smoke are worse than the results of drunk drivers.

Victor Steblin Prince George, B.C.
BSc Honours Math
MA Math Education from UBC
Currently teaching math in a Secondary School in Prince George, B.C.

Do you know that the smell of wood smoke is affecting your health?

Do you know that the smell of wood smoke is affecting your health?
By Brie Oishi

Last year I decided to do research as to the harmful effects of fireplace smoke emissions on people’s health. Through information provided by UBC and BC Lung Association I learned that fireplace smoke does contain more than 100 chemicals and numerous toxic substances which are linked to many diseases such as asthma, bronchial problems, and Lung diseases; including cancer. Also, thickening of the blood vessels that are a risk factor to stroke and heart attacks; it also increases the rate of ear infection and even short term exposure shows increased incidence of cardiac arrhythmia (irregular heart rhythm).

A study on lab animals suggests that prolonged exposure to wood smoke may weaken the immune system; and I question; “is ‘that’ the reason for the multitude of allergy sufferers in our country?” If so, then many people are Allergy victims because of wood smoke exposure from neighboring fireplaces! It is my understanding that these toxic substances do penetrate dwellings even with windows closed, putting people at risk. Up to now, Metro Vancouver has not been successful in convincing the public of the harmful effects on people’s health from ”Wood Burning” and is still trying to educate them. A stove exchange program is in force.

It is understandable that this may be necessary for individuals who are dependent on wood as their only source of fuel, but in our highly populated Metro Vancouver area, where weather conditions are not exactly of a 5 star rating, I feel that it would be in the best interest of all living and breathing beings to simply ban the use of Wood Burning. Some authority will just have to take a stand on this issue and put their foot down, so to speak, and in my opinion Metro Vancouver would be the first choice to do that and of course our municipalities.

As I have been in contact with our federal and provincial Government on this issue, their reply was, that it falls under the jurisdiction of municipalities.
I am aware that toxins from wood burning are only part of the pollution problem, but it is that part which is easily cleared up."Wood burning fireplaces can easily be replaced by a Gas burning one."

Banning Wood Burning Fireplaces should not be looked upon as taking away someone’s privilege to enjoy a roaring fire, but to be considered as an improvement of our air quality. That is what all of us are wishing for, right?

Will you therefore “please” join me and seriously consider the positive effect a ban of Wood Burning Fireplaces will have on people’s health and call your municipality to ban those polluting devices. The life you save may be your own, or that of a loved one.

Sincerely, Brie Oishi,
Port Coquitlam, B.C.

Lung Association Disagrees With Claim

Lung Association Disagrees With Claim
March 16, 2009


On March 16, 2009, the Jamestown, New York, Post-Journal featured an article on proposed regulations for outdoor wood boilers.

The American Lung Association in New York openly refuted some people’s claims that outdoor wood boilers (OWBs) do not cause any health problems. They basically stated that outdoor wood boilers are wreaking havoc across New York, polluting the air and making breathing difficult for New Yorkers forced to breathe the smoke they produce.

The Lung Associate confirmed that wood smoke emissions contain components such as carbon monoxide, various irritant gases, and chemicals known or suspected to be carcinogens, such as dioxin. Burning wood in close proximity to residential housing, regardless of stack height, creates a corridor for dirty air. Any smoke is toxic smoke that your neighbors are forced to breathe.

Breathing wood smoke is smoking!
The health effects of wood smoke exposure include increased asthma attacks, coughing, wheezing, increased hospital admissions for lower respiratory infections, difficulty breathing, bronchitis and pneumonia. Population studies show that young children are most likely to be affected. Wood smoke is also linked to a variety of other health effects, including increased risk of emergency room visits for asthma attacks, heart attacks and premature deaths.

According to the American Lung Association's 2008 State of the Air report (www.alany.org), many United States counties and cities received failing grades for air quality with dangerously high levels of ozone. Add in the high level of particulate matter generated by outdoor wood smoke, and you have a recipe for dirty, dangerous air.

Simply said, the negative health consequences from outdoor wood boilers outweigh the money saved from heating with wood.

Excerpted from remarks by Michael Seilback, Vice President, Public Policy & Communications, American Lung Association in New York

Laws governing wood smoke emissions is long overdue

To the Members of the Connecticut Public Health Committee


Below is another case that has come to the attention of Environment and Human Health, Inc. (EHHI). This man's name is William Kusmit and he is from Seymour, CT. This man, like many others, has tried to keep the smoke out of his home by putting plastic around his windows and doors. But he, as the others, have not realized that wood smoke particles are so small they cannot be kept them out - even in the newer tighter homes. Here is William Kusmit's case.

Nancy Alderman

To whom it may Concern,

I would like to take a moment of your time to share our experience with the problem of woodsmoke from our neighbor's chimney.

One day last year we noticed smoke all around our house with the smell of smoke getting into our home it was like being directly in front of a chimney.

I wrote to the building inspector to see if the neighbor's chimney met the building code.The building inspector left a note on my neighbors door which stated 'woodstove violation chimney height'.

My neighbor came banging on my door asking how I could 'turn him in'. I explained the problem we were having and how the smoke was even getting into our home and his response was that we should 'get new windows'. He later added 2 ft to the chimney to bring it up to code.

However, we continued to experience problems from the chimney exhaust so I asked my neighbor if he would add another 6 ft to this chimney and I would pay for it. He agreed to do this.

As I tried to deal with my neighbor and his smoke - the next thing I knew there was a police officer at my door telling me I could not tell my neighbor how to use his stove. The police officer told me harassment was against the law and if I talked to my neighbor again about the stove I would be arrested.

We continue to experience problems from being in contact with and breathing the exhaust from the chimney. This results in physical symptoms such as causing eyes to burn, congestion, and chest discomfort. The congestion and chest discomfort lasts for several days. I am also concerned about the long term health consequences of being exposed to this smoke.

Those of us with existing health problems are more susceptible to the effects of woodsmoke exposure, but the exhaust from this chimney is so strong no one would be able to tolerate this. I have coronary artery disease and my wife has Multiple Sclerosis.

We follow strict guidelines to try to maintain our health and then are exposed to the toxic elements of woodsmoke which adds to our health problems.

I believe the time for laws governing wood smoke emissions is long overdue. There are many people who are adversely affected by wood smoke. There is a great deal of evidence about the health risks of woodsmoke and we need laws to help people whose health is put in jeopardy because of being exposed to this woodsmoke pollution.

I have done what I can to try to keep the smoke out of the house such as putting plastic over the door going into the garage, sealing windows etc. but of course when we open the front door the smoke comes right into the house. My wife and I have had to wear masks when going from the house to the car because of the strong exhaust fumes.

I feel as though we are being poisoned by the smoke from my neighbors woodstove and there is nothing in Connecticut law to help us.

Thank You.
Sincerely,
William Kusmit
Seymour, CT
--
Nancy Alderman, President
Environment and Human Health, Inc.
1191 Ridge Road
North Haven, CT 06473
(phone) 203-248-6582
(fax) 203-288-7571
http://www.ehhi.org
http://ehhijournal.org/
+++++++++++

Web Master Comment.... Mr. Kusmit is correct. Even though wood smoke emissions violate property rights, harm the environment, are an assault and battery on your family, render your yard and property unlivable, and will physically make you very sick (and slowly kill you), the laws to protect Mr. Kusmit, us, and our families are so few and so weak, it is ironic and disappointing to know our elected officials are doing nothing to help. Connecticut elected officials (and let's also mention this applies to the rest of the U.S.A), the EPA (local and federal), Pollution Control Boards,and other governmental agencies that are suppose to protect us, have closed their eyes, covered their ears, remained mute, and have fallen into a vacuum on this urgent health issue.

The American Cancer Society and American Lung Association (and what about the Asthma and Allergy organizations?) also have been mute to address and/or support the banning of wood burning. Wood smoke causes cancer and is deadly to people with lung problems. Heck, even healthy people are affected by wood smoke. The above organizations silence and their non-action is an insult to all that have supported them in the past.

Please visit this great website for additional information..
http://burningissues.org/car-www/index.html

Montreal moves to snuff out wood stoves

Montreal moves to snuff out wood stoves
As air quality deteriorates, city proposes law banning installation of new wood stoves

http://www.cbc.ca/health/story/2009/02/04/mtl-wood-stove-ban-0204.html

CBC News

Smog hangs over Montreal on a January day.Smog hangs over Montreal on a January day. (CBC) Montreal is poised to pass one of the strictest laws in the country regarding wood stoves midway through a winter marked by record high levels of winter smog.

The City of Montreal wants to ban citizens from installing a wood stove in new and existing residential homes. Stoves that burn wood pellets will still be permitted.

Winter smog is becoming a major public health problem for Montreal, said Alan DeSousa, the city's executive committee member in charge of sustainable development.

So far this winter, the smog has been so bad that Environment Canada has issued 25 smog warnings, the most of any year on record. Public health authorities say chimney smoke makes up half of the air pollution during the winter in Montreal.

"The health of Montrealers is our priority," said DeSousa in a statement Wednesday.

"With more than 50,000 stoves on our territory, the city is taking action by adopting a law that will contribute to the reduction of the number of premature deaths … [caused by] the quality of air that we breathe."

The Montreal public health department estimates burning a wood stove for nine hours is the equivalent of driving a midsize car for a year, or about 18,000 kilometres of driving.

Proposed law contains exceptions.

While traditional wood stoves will be banned from being installed in new and existing homes, the stoves will be allowed for restaurants and other businesses that do food preparation requiring a wood oven.

The law does not require citizens to remove existing wood stoves, as is the case in the town of Hampstead, Que., which has given residents seven years to convert their stoves to gas or remove them entirely.

'With more than 50,000 stoves on our territory, the city is taking action.'­ Alan DeSousa, city councillor

However, DeSousa is encouraging residents to reconsider their choice of material they burn.

"I invite Montrealers to think about replacing their combustible wood stoves with devices that are less harmful to their health, that of their family and their neighbours," said DeSousa.

The City of Montreal is also calling on the provincial and federal governments to assist with tax rebates to help citizens cover the cost of replacing or converting old wood stoves.

The proposed law will make a first appearance before city council on Feb. 23.

The city will then hold public hearings on the issue.

The popularity of wood stoves spiked on the island of Montreal after the 1998 ice storm, which left some areas of the province without power for day

Letter to New York Times

This is the letter that was sent to the New York Times regarding this article: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/26/garden/26firepit.html?ref=garden


Regarding the article by Kimberly Stevens,

The statement "outdoor fireplaces offer an inexpensive and low-maintenance way to extend living and social spaces outdoors, especially at night when the mercury drops." perhaps should have been omitted as it leads to the notion that having an outdoor fireplace shows elegance in your way of living. This may encourage those, that cannot afford what Doug Armstrong and Maureen FitzPatrick have done, to do something along the same idea and use wood as fuel.


Poor air quality and pollution is a serious problem that requires the cooperation and effort of everyone. Just one important contributor to air pollution is often ignored. Residential wood burning produces fine particles and gases that contain a multitude of toxic substances and carcinogens.

Wood smoke is chemically active in the body 40 times longer than tobacco smoke and contains 12 times the amount of carcinogens and is more likely to cause cancer than the same amount of tobacco smoke, according to J. Lewtas-USEPA.



Fireplaces are ineffective in heating a home, and only a few hours of wood burning in a single home can drastically raise fine particle concentrations in dozens of surrounding homes throughout the neighbourhood. None of us are protected from this toxic smoke.

Burning wood and allowing it to foul the air of your neighbors is a rude and unnecessary assault on their senses. It causes many people, especially the young, the elderly and those with respiratory problems to be put in great physical danger.



I’ve had people tell me that they believe wood burning is safe as our forefathers heated that way. My response to them is that our forefathers had no other options. Also, many of them died at a very early age of ‘undetermined’ causes. Today, we know that some of those premature deaths most likely were from inhaling particulate matter, leading to various conditions that can result in death.
Burning wood is a costly and filthy affront to all that are invaded by it. Exposure to the smoke is extremely uncomfortable and causes burning eyes, dry and sore throat, irritation of the nasal passages, cardiovascular system damage, causes some types of cancer and brain damage, headaches, and allergic reactions, among other symptoms.

When smoke is prevalent in the area, people cannot open their windows for fresh air, because there is none. They cannot enjoy their own property due to the stench. Everyone should be able to relax in their own homes without the fear that they are being contaminated by toxic smoke. It is an environmental right of all people.



I can tell you first-hand what it is like when one is forced to deal with a smoke issue, as I have lived through it. Our ordeal began in 2002, when a neighbour began using a wood stove. We finally were forced from our home, by the smoke, for nearly 8 months. We now have an Interlocutory Injunction that was obtained in May of 2005 , after which we returned home to begin the cleanup and sanitization of the entire house. An expensive and exhausting mission.

I can tell you that the stench permeates your entire home, your clothing, your hair, and you can even taste it. Exposure to the smoke was extremely uncomfortable and caused burning eyes, dry throat, irritation of the nasal passages and headaches. When the smoke stopped, so did the symptoms.

There was no relief by opening windows because the acrid smells were like a fog covering our house. Buying expensive air cleaners did nothing to remove the odors.

There was no enjoying the deck and yard as long as the wood burning stove was in operation.

We were fortunate enough to have the means to seek legal help. There were no authorities that were of any help in getting the smoke stopped. What would happen to those that cannot afford legal help? Would they be forced to move out of their homes? Could they afford to do that? Would they be able to sell their home when a potential buyer saw or smelled the smoke? Or, would they have to remain in their homes with their children and become sick? It's a thought that is very disturbing to me.

I think it is high time that all municipalities give some thought to banning all wood burning in residential areas. Some have already begun to do just that! I fail to see how the public interest is served by permitting the unnecessary fouling of the air we all have the need to breathe.

Please do all you can to prevent environmental and health problems for everyone today and for future generations. There are many people currently dealing with wood burners that just will not stop burning until taken to court. This is a lengthy and expensive procedure that punishes, even further, the innocent victim of the wood smoke who has been suffering for some time already with the loss of the enjoyment of their property and the health effects of the smoke that filters into their home.

If laws were in place to ban wood burning the world would be a healthier place for all of us!

For more information, please go to www.woodburnersmoke.net and www.burningissues.org

Shirley Brandie
Canadian Regional Director Clean Air Revival, Inc.
http://burningissues.org
http://woodburnersmoke.net

Wood-burning stoves: Smoke-related complaints, health problems on the rise

Wood-burning stoves: Smoke-related complaints, health problems on the rise

By David Funkhouser | Tribune Newspapers
February 22, 2009

HARTFORD, Conn. — Jodi Blanco said she never got sick until her neighbor installed a wood-burning stove a few years ago.

Now she has been ill for more than a month, she wakes up coughing in her sleep, and her two young children are plagued by breathing problems.

But she can't get anyone to do anything about it, and she's not alone.

"My daughter missed a whole week of school, and my son has a continual runny nose and watery eyes, and he's complaining he doesn't feel good all the time," said Blanco of East Windsor, Conn. "When I open the bay window in front, I can smell the smoke. It's coming in my house, and it's making us sick."

An increasing number of people are firing up wood stoves, furnaces and fireplaces as a hedge against rising heating bills, but wood fuel, steeped in history and romance, has become a health hazard for many.

Even though the number of complaints is growing, the laws regarding wood-burning devices are limited, and there has been little that health and environmental officials can do.

For all the poetry and nostalgia surrounding fireplaces and wood stoves, their smoke is loaded with toxic compounds and particles that have been associated with cancer and severe respiratory problems.

States nationwide are reacting, in some cases banning wood burning entirely on days when air quality is poor. That can happen in the winter when temperature inversions—cold air staying close to the ground below warmer air above—keep polluted air from dispersing.

The worst offenders are outdoor wood furnaces, which typically produce a dirtier smoke than wood and pellet stoves. The units are supposed to be at least 200 feet from other homes and have a smokestack higher than surrounding rooftops, and owners are only supposed to burn clean wood.

John Tarquinio, owner of Fireside Supply in Hebron, Conn., said stove and furnace sales shot up in 2008 when fuel prices spiked. He agreed that misuse can be a problem.

"It needs to be regulated, to be looked at. It needs to be cleaned up," he said.

When Dorothy Alderman and her husband moved to Andover Lake, just a few people among her 100 or so neighbors burned wood, and then only occasionally. A few years ago, that started to change.

"One day, I saw 26 houses with smoke coming out," Alderman said. "It's not just, 'Let's make a fire on the weekend,' it's all the time."

The smoke began to bother her and eventually led to a permanent medical condition, parosmia, in which her sense of smell is so damaged that she cannot stand even slight hints of smoke.

In 2006, after 20 years on the lake, she and her husband decided to move. Now they live in Hebron, which has banned the installation of outdoor wood furnaces.

The Hartford Courant

Trespassing wood smoke a threat to health, safety

Kennebec Journal & Morning Sentinel
02/19/2009

Trespassing wood smoke a threat to health, safety

Since the Morning Sentinel did not see fit to have a reporter at the Oakland Town Council meeting on Feb. 11, I thought I would share some thoughts regarding the unsatisfactory outcome of that meeting.

Some residents of Oakland are being made miserable by wood smoke discharged in a residential area. The council denied authority to deal with the nuisance circumstance.

The nuisance wood smoke is a real threat to the health and safety of the residents to the west of the old Cascade mill. Unfortunately, it has not been treated as such by the town council or agencies of state, namely the Department of Environmental Protection and the Department of Health and Human Services.

I was most impressed by the quality and seriousness of testimony by residents, one whose family had to abandon their home and another who can't do simple yard work and once even thought her house was on fire and the American Lung Association representative present.

That a clear and present danger exists from this smoke trespass is inarguable. The council seemed impatient with testimony and, in my opinion, did not grasp the seriousness of the issue or the desperate need for help of those people directly affected by the smoke.

We are all placed in danger when the agencies of our elected government chartered to protect us fail to act when needed in a timely manner.

Jim Easton

Oakland

See one reader comments below....

cracklinRose
Feb 19, 2009 9:41 PM
I will never understand the mentality of some people. Wood smoke is a danger to human health & the environment. It is a proven fact. Yet, the answers posted to this letter appear to be written by people who just like to read a letter and then inject their inane responses. How about learning some true facts before showing yourselves to be complete idiots?

If you were forced from your home, as I was, I bet you'd be singing another tune!
http://woodburnersmoke.net Look under photos & videos and tell me that you would put up with it?

Trespass of smoke is against the law as our neighbor has found out. So, go ahead & do like him and you won't be telling anyone to leave town...it will likely be you, broke and heading to the poor house!

Copyright © 2003- 2009 Blethen Maine Newspapers, Inc.

Lobbying to stop the proliferation of wood stoves and fireplaces

The Gazette
Montrealers won't rush to give up fireplace use
February 9, 2009

The chilly depths of this winter of long nights and freezing temperatures is perhaps not the ideal moment for the city of Montreal to suggest to residents that they stop lighting their wood stoves and fireplaces. Fireplaces have been a source of heat and comfort and pleasure for humankind since prehistory.

Unfortunately, however, research has found that in a city the size of Montreal, with its large number of wood stoves and fireplaces, the solid particles all those fires emit into the air are very bad for people's health.

As the number of wood-burning stoves and fireplaces increases in the Montreal area so, too, does smog. This is a development health officials say is leading to between 15 to 40 premature deaths a year from respiratory illness linked to air pollution.

Alan DeSousa, the city executive committee's environment man, has been lobbying to stop the proliferation of wood stoves and fireplaces. On Feb. 23, the city will table a bylaw banning the installation of new wood stoves or fireplaces. Montreal will be Canada's first big city to do this.

"Wood is looked at as a natural substance and cozy and comfortable," said DeSousa. "In the country, it's not a problem, but in the city it's too concentrated." There are an estimated 50,000 wood-burning stoves and fireplaces in Montreal and 35,000 more elsewhere on the island, and thousands more in the off-island suburbs. Environment Canada says a single wood stove burning for nine hours emits as much pollution as a car would in a year.

Among scientists, there is little doubt about the role clean air plays in health. A recent U.S. study found that cleaner air in recent decades has given the average American five more months of life.

DeSousa concedes that a ban on new fireplaces and stoves will not reduce the current level of woodfire pollution. He does hope, however, to change the behaviour of those whose homes already have one or the other.

This will prove, we think, to be a much bigger challenge than the city foresees.
DeSousa said the city is trying a three-pronged approach : First, informing the public of the health dangers; next, the planned bylaw against new stoves and fireplaces, and finally an effort to persuade the province, and possibly Ottawa, to pay to help people convert from wood to less polluting - if less charming - forms of warmth, such as natural gas and electricity.

That three-pronged attack is the standard approach to changing public behaviour, but in this case we think it will be easier to say than to do. The idea is not to send "smoke police" prowling our neighbourhoods to bust up romantic evenings to hand out tickets, but rather to get people to use their fireplaces less. Nor does he cut any slack for owners of modern, high-efficiency woodstoves.

DeSousa says he knows that even with public co-operation, the city can do little against woodsmoke pollution. Considering those realities, this whole project will seem to many people to be more than a little Quixotic.

Woodsmoke is a health hazard. But this problem might prove to be less manageable than city hall seems to anticipate. Fire has been a part of human households for a long long time.

© Copyright (c) The Montreal Gazette

Wood smoke is a serious threat to public health

Post subject: Wood smoke is a serious threat to public health

Fireplace smoke is major source of winter time air pollution

Jan 22, 2009

SACRAMENTO: Today, the Air Resources Board heard the results of several studies that show smoke from wood fires aggravates lung and heart disease and increases the number of hospital admissions.

"Today's report to the Board underscores the need for air districts throughout the state to curtail fireplace burning when air quality is suffering," said ARB Chairman Mary Nichols. "This starkly illustrates our need to continue reducing particulate matter emissions."

At this morning's hearing, board members heard a presentation of research results that indicate exposure to wood smoke may reduce lung function and reduce the blood's ability to clot properly. In addition, wood smoke exposure may also increase substances in the body that lead to cardio-vascular and pulmonary inflammation. These health threats could be particularly dangerous to those with preexisting heart or lung disease.

ARB research staff reviewed four recent national toxicological studies in presenting today's findings to the Board.

The findings support fireplace ordinances that many local air districts throughout California are implementing.

The research found that wood smoke can cause a 10 percent increase of hospital admissions for respiratory problems among children. ARB estimates that between 20 to 80 percent of ambient wintertime particulate matter is due to wood smoke. Studies have found up to 70 percent of smoke from chimneys can re-enter a home or neighboring residences.

Wood smoke consists of several pollutants, including carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, particulate matter and other irritating and toxic components. California's wood smoke problem and its pollution problem in general, are compounded by the state's geography and weather. The many valleys and calm air cause the pollutants to remain at ground level rather than be swept away.

In several areas throughout California, air quality officials are restricting residential wood burning on days when particulate matter pollution is expected to be high. These and other strategies are substantially reducing winter time peak particulate matter levels and therefore should reduce the risk of cardiovascular hospitalizations and premature deaths.

The Air Resources Board is a department of the California Environmental Protection Agency. ARB's mission is to promote and protect public health, welfare, and ecological resources through effective reduction of air pollutants while recognizing and considering effects on the economy. The ARB oversees all air pollution control
efforts in California to attain and maintain health based air quality standards.

source
http://www.arb.ca.gov/newsrel/nr012209.htm

Quebec passes by-law banning wood-burning 'appliances'

Visit this web site---http://woodburnersmoke.net/index.htm

Hampstead, Quebec passes by-law banning wood-burning 'appliances'

By-law No. 729-2, dealing with construction and plumbing, as well as wood-burning appliances, states that "no person shall install a wood burning appliance, in which wood or solid fuel is burned and which discharges combustion products to the air, in or about any residential property."

The by-law defines "wood burning appliance" as "a fireplace insert, wood stove, central furnace or similar device, including a pellet stove and any outdoor solid fuel combustion appliance." It further states that "this by-law does not apply to barbeques."

A fireplace insert is a device, usually a steel chamber with glass door in front and vents around, that is inserted into a brick fireplace. Its purpose is to increase heating efficiency.

"It is the responsibility of every property owner that already has such appliances installed to comply with this article of the By-law within seven (7) years of it coming into force," the by-law adds.


Visit this web site---http://woodburnersmoke.net/index.htm

Wood smoke letter to Amherstburg, Ontario City Council and Court Officials

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To: Amherstburg, Ontario City Officials and Court Officials.
From: Ernest Grolimund, Waterville ME 04901 USA
Date: Aug. 14, 2008
Subject: The Brandie wood smoke problem and arguments for banning wood burning.

You have an opportunity to solve an important societal problem and make an impact on the world which is watching.

I heard about the Brandie case on www.BurningIssues.org and read a legal brief on it. Then I met Mrs. Brandie on line in the forum. Both of us and many others have been smoked out and ignored by local and state or provincial governments.
The Brandies have been fortunate in being able to get legal help but many others can not afford the tremendous legal fees. Therefore, I am trying to help this brave, courageous leader in her fight. She has asked for my help, and I volunteer it, and affirm as if in court and before God that everything I say is true to the best of my ability. I have a Bachelors degree in Civil Engineering, and made important contributions to the U Mass Wind Furnace, which is in the Smithsonian. I helped plan a state of the art energy and material recovering incinerator, helped start a hydropower movement in New England, and lately helped develop the #1 rated air cleaner in the world to protect my asthmatic daughter from extreme wood smoke. I have also been a leader in getting the historic Outdoor Wood Boiler bill passed, and the first amendment to it, and the historic State Building Code. The Governor has thanked me and commended me for this work. My wife has a similar background as a who's who college graduate and she works in a hospital as a Med Tech.

There are many laws on the books for health nuisances, air emission laws, dangerous heating equipment and dangerous buildings. However, enforcement is difficult because of enforcement costs and monitoring difficulties and fast changing science and environmental law. Building inspectors and health officers theoretically are supposed to have power to step in when there are emergencies. However, Mayors and Governors claim discretionary powers to not enforce and few have the resources to fight them. Therefore, I agree with the Brandies that a different mode of enforcement is necessary, to save the life, health, safety, and welfare of people in a timely manner. She has proposed a simple ban on woodburning and I can support that or other alternatives. But her proposal is the simplest and easiest to enforce and the least costly.

The millions of people in the Clean Air Revival support her; doctors, lawyers, engineers and scientists and victims. It eliminates arguments and costly trials. It eliminates time consuming and expensive testing and it recognizes what the leading doctors and environmentalists are saying. Sudden discoveries in science reveal that outdoor wood boilers create 40 mcg/cm of pm2.5 within 500' of them, in zero wind conditions that are common. Further, hospital consensus is that 30 mcg/cm can cause heart attacks and asthma attacks and this can kill some people. KILL !!!
Old Stoves can cause 30 - 40 mcg and old fireplaces can cause 30 mcg and ambient air in zero winds is 30 mcg. Just the ambient air from car pollution in the summer can cause asthma attacks and heart attacks.

The Am. Lung Assoc. educated me on this to protect my daughter. I was faced with a multiple burner; smoker, who had two heart attacks and when he started burning, another neighbor had a heart attack and bypass surgery. Then my daughter had progressive asthma worsening until she had an asthma attack and I was affected too. The Am Lung and Dr, Brown predicted it, and it happened in my back yard. I bought a Sears Envirosense air cleaner with two opacity meters that read very unhealthy dust and odors or particulates and aromatic hydrocarbons. I have a doctors testimony and a lawyers opinion. By now, I'm a little like Rachel Carson who noticed the birds dying. Except, I am noticing people dying. I noted a death in a mill inundated by woodsmoke and noted the town did not investigate or the coroner, but hospitals are making the connection in more educated areas.

When you consider that 30 mcg ambient air and 30 mcg from one fireplace alone can kill, replacement becomes necessary. The Maine Task Force recognizes it and is recommending replacement of all old equipment somehow. They seem to be settling in on change-outs but I'm arguing for a simple ban with some support of the Am Lung that recognizes they take decades to work.

I also warned the Governor that a disaster like the London Fog Inversion could happen killing thousands in one day. If there is a blizzard, power failure, extensive burning, and an inversion, it could happen. Within weeks there was an inversion with 10% burning and the pm went to 67 mcg/cm and again the hospitals and Dr. Brown and ALA say 30 mcg for a few hours can cause asthma attacks. The EPA told me later that they are seeing 300mcg in woodburning communities in valleys and isolated spots. This is another factor leading to replacement recommendations.
You may be saying what about cert stoves? The governments say they are safe. Actually, some EPA tests are showing highly variable emissions and some cert stoves are just as polluting as the old stoves, though results are variable and the EPA is not acting on this. The average is 15 mcg say after 1 year from creosote and many other possible causes. 30 mcg plus 15 mcg gives 45 mcg and this can kill. That is why I support the Brandies in calling for a simple inexpensive ban, that by the way can still save people money. If people convert to gas, and use an outside source of air which is common, and they use a zone heating scheme and take advantage of radiant heating, they can still save 50% on their heating bills.

In a way, The Brandies are putting all woodburning on trial. Law says that in health nuisance cases, if there is an alternative source of energy that does not cause health problems, then it must be used. Grandfathering is also illegal when life and health are at risk. Alternatives are gas appliances, free solar energy streaming through windows that can be tapped with insulating shutters like Jefferson's, and the traditional oil, gas, and electricity combined with more insulation or super insulation. The Maine wood to energy task force said insulation and conservation are more important than wood surprisingly, though ordered to promote wood. When is anyone going to have another chance to do this? This is the most famous case on wood smoke in decades, and city councilmen in Waterville and all over are thinking of this case.

Sudden changes in science are driving this. Changes in medical science are leading lagging changes in pm standards, and now global warming. Woodburners argue that woodburning is carbon neutral but the US EPA says that is not accepted science and others argue that NASA scientists find pm causes global warming ignored by woodburners. Gore, a world leader, says that woodburning is 30% of the problem right now, and even if wood is regrown, there will be a 100 year time delay accelerating warming immediately. Then there is methane which is prevalent in wood smoke and is 23 times as bad for global warming, according to the Clean Air Revival.
Given the complicated nature of the science and the never ending regulations that could ensue, such as regulations for drying, and storing, and operating, and maintaining, and cleaning, and monitoring, and enforcing. Given the quick action of smoke, the best way to handle this is to keep it simple for the stupid, and do a simple ban. It is like asbestos and lead and other toxics and environmental problems.

The Maine DEP recommended this for outdoor wood boilers and now the other equipment is shown to be a problem as well. Unfortunately, the non scientific legislature refused to follow the recommendations of the DEP, Am. Lung Assn and NESCAUM. You could force the uneducated public to obey the doctors essentially and treat all woodburning as on big nuisance for individuals and the planet.

90% of the people in Maine were polled by the state, and they said they did not want tobacco smoke in their living environments. Wood smoke is the same basic thing, maybe worse. 90% are also refusing to burn wood according to statistics. People have been educated about tobacco smoke and second hand smoke by the doctors and seem to instinctively know smoke is bad now, except for the smokers and woodburning minority. It has been said that judges rule by what is common and accepted. Fireplaces used to be commonly used and accepted but now the reverse is true.
Finally, the costs must be considered. The wood burners go right to this and say we want to save $2,000/yr on energy bills. But health costs must be considered. The EPA says the value of a human life is $6 million from life insurance costs, lost productivity, and economic multipliers ! This is staggering. Add $1,000/day hospital beds for asthma and heart attacks and you have to realize that this could all add up and it does. $300 billion/ yr for pm according to Dr. Schwartz who is the world authority. $150 billion/yr for woodsmoke pm according to the Clean Air Revival, recognized as having the #1 rated educational website in the world on air pollution, assuming wood smoke is responsible for 1/2 the pm.

I tried to break this down to stove costs and came up with $2,000 to $10,000/yr for every stove. If woodburners save $2,000 but it costs society $10,000, then the balance falls towards a ban. But this needs to be checked. God does not use money to weigh human life according to the prophets. We all can become the next St. Paul or Benny Hinn, so human life is precious, and a price cannot be put on it. But economic advantages to not burning are noted. Less moving out. More moving in. Higher valuations and tax revenues. More money spent on business instead of health and medical costs. Economic multipliers apply to this too. There is also something noted in Maine as increased quality of place attracting business and tourism. Putting numbers on this is hard and beyond me but the Am Lung and the Maine task force concluded that the economic benefit to Maine of a change-out could be 1.5 billion, on the same magnitude as the Clean Air Revival estimate and Dr. Schwartz's. It's enough to pay for a $1,500 change-out rebate. The benefits, whatever they are, would exist for a ban with no expenditure of money.

In summary, I say remember these things: Do not kill. Love your neighbor. Care for your neighbor. Do not poison. Do not harm. Do not create a health nuisance or decrease the enjoyment of another's property. Do not be negligent in enforcing law. Do not trespass. Do not allow any visible smoke to cross property lines as some US states have said. Do not allow second hand wood smoke. Help the young and the elderly who can't speak up. Help the sick and the disabled. Help those with cancer and help prevent cancer. Help the 30 % who are asthmatic; the 20% with heart disease. Only the few who are strong and healthy seem not affected but the doctors know better. They say all are affected. You too. Ban woodburning.

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