The Wood Smoke Activist Network
June 2011 Newsletter
Educating the world about the health and climate impacts of wood smoke and combustion aerosols.
Editor: Shirley Brandie
Ontario Director of Canadian Clean Air Alliance http://canadiancleanairalliance.ca
Web site: http://WoodBurnerSmoke.net
Co-editor: Julie Mellum
Web site: Take Back the Air
Mission Statement
Our mission is to educate public officials, government and all citizens about wood smoke as a major form of hazardous air pollution that affects our health, use of our property, water, crops, livestock, the environment and climate change. We urge citizens everywhere to press for legislative changes to call wood smoke a public nuisance under state health codes and to ban all wood burning.”
Welcome!
We hope that this newsletter will give you the information and inspiration you need. Regain clean air to breathe and eliminate the wood burning that is affecting your health and your home environment. (http://WoodBurnerSmoke.net)
Please pass this issue on to others in need of help and suggest that they send an email to s.brandie@sympatico.ca to be added to the mailing list.
Webmaster----Check out this great organization for help, advice, and information on how to ban/end deadly woodsmoke in your community. You can also receive (via e-mail) a free monthly newsletter filled with great facts, successes, and assistance.
http://WoodBurnerSmoke.net
s.brandie@sympatico.ca
Showing posts with label ADA. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ADA. Show all posts
Wood Burning--Major source of black carbon soot
Sunday, April 3, 2011
Wood-Burning Is Another Cause Of Pollution
Letter to the Editor
The March 30 front page article, "Air pollution down sharply," brought good tidings that industrial pollution has plunged to lower levels. That is great news for asthmatics, the environment and for community health and livability.
Yet for every industrial smokestack that is shut down by the flailing economy, residential pollution seems sharply on the rise.
Recreational wood-burning and the proliferation of restaurant wood grills are blanketing our city streets, parks and neighborhoods with the caustic fumes of wood smoke more than ever before.
Isn't it time that restaurants and residents also help control air pollution by not burning wood for food and for fun? Our health and our planet cannot sustain these behaviors. We must spread the word that wood smoke is a major source of black carbon soot.
It is far more concentrated than tobacco smoke, while containing legions of the same toxins. It travels farther and remains chemically active in the body up to 40 hours longer.
Wood smoke that drifts onto the property of others deprives them of using and enjoying their own property. Please don't burn.
Julie Mellum, Boca Raton
Source:
Sun Sentinel (Florida)
April 2, 2011
Letter to the Editor
The March 30 front page article, "Air pollution down sharply," brought good tidings that industrial pollution has plunged to lower levels. That is great news for asthmatics, the environment and for community health and livability.
Yet for every industrial smokestack that is shut down by the flailing economy, residential pollution seems sharply on the rise.
Recreational wood-burning and the proliferation of restaurant wood grills are blanketing our city streets, parks and neighborhoods with the caustic fumes of wood smoke more than ever before.
Isn't it time that restaurants and residents also help control air pollution by not burning wood for food and for fun? Our health and our planet cannot sustain these behaviors. We must spread the word that wood smoke is a major source of black carbon soot.
It is far more concentrated than tobacco smoke, while containing legions of the same toxins. It travels farther and remains chemically active in the body up to 40 hours longer.
Wood smoke that drifts onto the property of others deprives them of using and enjoying their own property. Please don't burn.
Julie Mellum, Boca Raton
Source:
Sun Sentinel (Florida)
April 2, 2011
Wood Smoke and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Wood Smoke and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
Wood smoke pollution is blanketing our nation with its caustic fumes, depriving citizens of their property rights to use and enjoy their property smoke-free. And it is not just a nuisance--it is a severe public health hazard. Asthma is epidemic and is the number one reason for school absenteeism. How can it be that while tobacco smoke is now banished from most bars and restaurants, nothing is being done about wood smoke? It is chemically similar to tobacco smoke, but is far more concentrated and travels farther. Yet despite indoor smoking bans, our public officials are not protecting public health. They are "selling out" to lobbyists from the wood burning industry, rather than upholding our basic right to breathe clean air.
Wood smoke is implicated not only in asthma attacks and heart attacks, but in premature death in people of all ages. It is especially harmful to children and those with heart or lung disease and other disabilities such as autism and diabetes. Wood smoke, in fact, when it interferes with the ability of citizens with disabilities to use public spaces, may violate the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). This civil rights legislation guarantees people with disabilities, such as asthma, "access" to public spaces, including city parks, streets and sidewalks. An Iowa District Court in 2003, in fact, ordered the town of Mallard to stop allowing wood burning, because wood smoke presented a "physical barrier" to a small child with severe asthma that prevented her from using public spaces.
Therefore it is up to us, who are the most bothered by wood smoke, to begin a bold new campaign based on why wood smoke violates ADA Guidelines. We must talk it up at every opportunity and let our city governments, mayors, state and national legislators, schools and local health departments know that:
1. Wood smoke presents a physical barrier to people with disabilities like asthma, because it prevents access to public spaces like city streets, parks and sidewalks.
2. That residential wood smoke from outdoor recreational fires, indoor fireplaces and restaurant wood grills are a substantial source of fine particle pollution, which is a health hazard for all citizens.
3. With increasing disabilities, especially in children, it is paramount that cities adopt ADA guidelines that remove wood smoke as a barrier to the use of public spaces by all citizens.
In addition, email the national "Access Board" about the need for eradicating wood smoke barriers for those with disabilities: http://www.access-board.gov/transit/)>http://www.access-board.gov/tran.
To join with others toward this goal, please contact info@takebacktheair.com.
Julie Mellum
President, Take Back the Air www.takebacktheair.com
Minneapolis, MN
Source: The Wood Smoke Activist
January 2011 Newsletter
web site: http://WoodBurnerSmoke.net
Wood smoke pollution is blanketing our nation with its caustic fumes, depriving citizens of their property rights to use and enjoy their property smoke-free. And it is not just a nuisance--it is a severe public health hazard. Asthma is epidemic and is the number one reason for school absenteeism. How can it be that while tobacco smoke is now banished from most bars and restaurants, nothing is being done about wood smoke? It is chemically similar to tobacco smoke, but is far more concentrated and travels farther. Yet despite indoor smoking bans, our public officials are not protecting public health. They are "selling out" to lobbyists from the wood burning industry, rather than upholding our basic right to breathe clean air.
Wood smoke is implicated not only in asthma attacks and heart attacks, but in premature death in people of all ages. It is especially harmful to children and those with heart or lung disease and other disabilities such as autism and diabetes. Wood smoke, in fact, when it interferes with the ability of citizens with disabilities to use public spaces, may violate the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). This civil rights legislation guarantees people with disabilities, such as asthma, "access" to public spaces, including city parks, streets and sidewalks. An Iowa District Court in 2003, in fact, ordered the town of Mallard to stop allowing wood burning, because wood smoke presented a "physical barrier" to a small child with severe asthma that prevented her from using public spaces.
Therefore it is up to us, who are the most bothered by wood smoke, to begin a bold new campaign based on why wood smoke violates ADA Guidelines. We must talk it up at every opportunity and let our city governments, mayors, state and national legislators, schools and local health departments know that:
1. Wood smoke presents a physical barrier to people with disabilities like asthma, because it prevents access to public spaces like city streets, parks and sidewalks.
2. That residential wood smoke from outdoor recreational fires, indoor fireplaces and restaurant wood grills are a substantial source of fine particle pollution, which is a health hazard for all citizens.
3. With increasing disabilities, especially in children, it is paramount that cities adopt ADA guidelines that remove wood smoke as a barrier to the use of public spaces by all citizens.
In addition, email the national "Access Board" about the need for eradicating wood smoke barriers for those with disabilities: http://www.access-board.gov/transit/)>http://www.access-board.gov/tran.
To join with others toward this goal, please contact info@takebacktheair.com.
Julie Mellum
President, Take Back the Air www.takebacktheair.com
Minneapolis, MN
Source: The Wood Smoke Activist
January 2011 Newsletter
web site: http://WoodBurnerSmoke.net
Clean Air: Just What the Dr. Ordered
Friday, January 14, 2011
Clean Air: Just What the Dr. Ordered
What is the U.S government doing to stop air pollution?
Post by Woodnyet » Fri Dec 10, 2010
Source: BurningIssues.org
Public health and medical organizations are urging Congress to support the experts at the US Environmental Protection Agency who are working to update the safeguards that protect public health from pollution, and to resist pressure from polluters trying to stop them.
Visit NRDCs Switchboard BlogA letter signed by the American Lung Association, the American Public Health Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics and nearly 300 other organizations outlined that while the EPA has been successful at protecting Americans' health, there is more to do:
Forty years ago, Congressional leaders from both parties wrote and passed the Clean Air Act. This law directed the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to protect public health and the environment. Since then this wise congressional legacy has saved lives and improved the quality of life for millions of Americans.
But the job is not yet done. Far too many of our communities still suffer from poor air quality. Too many families, particularly those of lower income, face the impacts of toxic air pollution every day. And far too many of our nation’s children, elderly, and people with asthma, cardiovascular and lung diseases and diabetes live under added threats to their health from breathing polluted air and the impacts of global warming.
And continues:
Over the coming years the EPA will be fulfilling its duty to reduce the smog and soot pollution, air toxics, and global warming pollution that are the cause of these public health threats. We urge you to fully support the EPA in fulfilling this responsibility. Doing so is quite literally a matter of life and death for tens of thousands of people and will mean the difference between chronic debilitating illness or a healthy life for hundreds of thousands more.
The groups also rolled out a new ad campaign for hill publications, reinforcing the central message of the letter. You can see the ad here. The pressure from health groups is in response to polluter efforts to halt creation of new air pollution safeguards.
As Charles D. Connor, President and CEO of the American Lung Association said, “We urge members of Congress to reject the pleas from polluters and continue to support the Act and the EPA’s ability to protect the air we breathe.”
Now, what exactly are the polluters trying to do? Persuade Congress that this is all just expensive, pointless rule-making that will cost the government money and kill jobs. The Edison Electric Institute has been presenting the new safeguards as a complicated and frightening parade of regulatory over-reach; but the World Resources Institute blew that to pieces with a powerful analysis that you can find here.
And the US Chamber of Commerce went the way of kindergartners with a knock-off of the game Candyland to show how awful protecting public health would be for business. And I've blogged on some of the other efforts by polluters to hold back the EPA.
Fortunately, our nation’s leading health organizations are reminding us what's at stake. As Cynthia Bearer, MD, PhD, Board Chair of the Children's Environmental Health Network says
"Children are especially vulnerable to harm from polluted air. Air pollutants have been linked to asthma attacks, infant mortality, and even DNA damage to the fetus. Dirty air can be, quite literally, a killer."
What's the bottom line? As O. Marion Burton, MD, FAAP and president of the American Academy of Pediatrics put it,
"There is a compelling need to move forward, not back, on efforts to ensure clean air for all."
There you have it, Congress: Uphold the Clean Air Act. Doctors' orders.
source
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/pete-altm ... 94168.html
The Surgeon General has determined that there is no safe level of ambient smoke.
If you smell even a subtle odor of smoke, you are being exposed to poisonous and carcinogenic compounds.
Join us in the fight for smoke-free neighborhoods. Your family's health and safety are at stake!
Source: BurningIssues.org
http://burningissues.org/forum/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?f=28&t=4019#p9983
Webmaster: Readers----Please go to the BurningIssues website for more information. This website is great.
Let's ban all woodsmoke!
What is the U.S government doing to stop air pollution?
Post by Woodnyet » Fri Dec 10, 2010
Source: BurningIssues.org
Public health and medical organizations are urging Congress to support the experts at the US Environmental Protection Agency who are working to update the safeguards that protect public health from pollution, and to resist pressure from polluters trying to stop them.
Visit NRDCs Switchboard BlogA letter signed by the American Lung Association, the American Public Health Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics and nearly 300 other organizations outlined that while the EPA has been successful at protecting Americans' health, there is more to do:
Forty years ago, Congressional leaders from both parties wrote and passed the Clean Air Act. This law directed the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to protect public health and the environment. Since then this wise congressional legacy has saved lives and improved the quality of life for millions of Americans.
But the job is not yet done. Far too many of our communities still suffer from poor air quality. Too many families, particularly those of lower income, face the impacts of toxic air pollution every day. And far too many of our nation’s children, elderly, and people with asthma, cardiovascular and lung diseases and diabetes live under added threats to their health from breathing polluted air and the impacts of global warming.
And continues:
Over the coming years the EPA will be fulfilling its duty to reduce the smog and soot pollution, air toxics, and global warming pollution that are the cause of these public health threats. We urge you to fully support the EPA in fulfilling this responsibility. Doing so is quite literally a matter of life and death for tens of thousands of people and will mean the difference between chronic debilitating illness or a healthy life for hundreds of thousands more.
The groups also rolled out a new ad campaign for hill publications, reinforcing the central message of the letter. You can see the ad here. The pressure from health groups is in response to polluter efforts to halt creation of new air pollution safeguards.
As Charles D. Connor, President and CEO of the American Lung Association said, “We urge members of Congress to reject the pleas from polluters and continue to support the Act and the EPA’s ability to protect the air we breathe.”
Now, what exactly are the polluters trying to do? Persuade Congress that this is all just expensive, pointless rule-making that will cost the government money and kill jobs. The Edison Electric Institute has been presenting the new safeguards as a complicated and frightening parade of regulatory over-reach; but the World Resources Institute blew that to pieces with a powerful analysis that you can find here.
And the US Chamber of Commerce went the way of kindergartners with a knock-off of the game Candyland to show how awful protecting public health would be for business. And I've blogged on some of the other efforts by polluters to hold back the EPA.
Fortunately, our nation’s leading health organizations are reminding us what's at stake. As Cynthia Bearer, MD, PhD, Board Chair of the Children's Environmental Health Network says
"Children are especially vulnerable to harm from polluted air. Air pollutants have been linked to asthma attacks, infant mortality, and even DNA damage to the fetus. Dirty air can be, quite literally, a killer."
What's the bottom line? As O. Marion Burton, MD, FAAP and president of the American Academy of Pediatrics put it,
"There is a compelling need to move forward, not back, on efforts to ensure clean air for all."
There you have it, Congress: Uphold the Clean Air Act. Doctors' orders.
source
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/pete-altm ... 94168.html
The Surgeon General has determined that there is no safe level of ambient smoke.
If you smell even a subtle odor of smoke, you are being exposed to poisonous and carcinogenic compounds.
Join us in the fight for smoke-free neighborhoods. Your family's health and safety are at stake!
Source: BurningIssues.org
http://burningissues.org/forum/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?f=28&t=4019#p9983
Webmaster: Readers----Please go to the BurningIssues website for more information. This website is great.
Let's ban all woodsmoke!
Legal:Wood Smoke and the Americans With Disabilities Act
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
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
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
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