The Wood Smoke Activist-January 2010 Newsletter-Editorial

The Wood Smoke Activist
January 2010 Newsletter
Educating the world about the health and climate impacts of wood smoke and combustion aerosols.
Editor: Shirley Brandie
1/1/2010


Editorial

Now that winter is upon us many people are suffering greatly from the effects of wood smoke that is invading their homes. Instead of looking out the windows at glistening white snow instead they see dark speckles on the snow, those speckles being output from neighboring wood smoke. I remember it vividly as our snow was speckled also up until the burning was ended.

Not only that, what they see out their windows is clouds of wood smoke of varying colors , the colors depending on what is being burned at the time, surrounding the neighborhood.

Not a beautiful winter holiday scene at all. Can you imagine a Season’s Greetings card with a scene like that imprinted on it?
Now that their hopes for that beautiful special holiday scene are dashed, once again by the neighbor’s “need to burn”, they decide that the stench and irritating fumes are just too much to impose on their guests and give up the idea of a family get-together in their home again this year.

They busy themselves with trying to find something that will get the stench out of their house so that they can try to make the best of it. Nothing works and depression sets in.

In this day and age it is beyond belief that there are people that, even when they have been made aware of the discomfort they are causing with their wood burning, continue to stoke that burner and fumigate the neighbors.
For as many years as I have been researching the psyches of burners, I have not come up with why they have the need to hurt others. I know it is there but I can’t put my finger on it yet. Some have suggested pyromania, control issues, mental illnesses and even a wood fetish.

They say that you cannot help someone if they don’t think they need help. But we must not forget that we are the victims of their smoke. And, we don’t like to be thought of as victims. We are stronger than that! We will fight for our right to breathe fresh air in our own homes and yards!

This is a goal for all of us at the start of a brand new year. Let’s make 2010 the year we take back the air!

Shirley
The Wood Smoke Activist
January 2010 Newsletter
Educating the world about the health and climate impacts of wood smoke and combustion aerosols.
Editor: Shirley Brandie
1/1/2010

Shirley Brandie
http://WoodBurnerSmoke.net

Ontario Director of Canadian Clean Air Alliance
http://www.canadiancleanairalliance.ca