Reply to Connie Lauder, part 2

Hello again, Councillor Lauder
If I may comment on Chris' list of cities that permit open air burning:
Cambridge and Ottawa do not permit burning in ordinary back yards.
In Cambridge, the fire MUST be 150 meters (492 ft.) from any building.
In Ottawa, fires are permitted in "mostly rural areas".
Also, in Burlington, one can complain if the smoke is a "nuisance" or if "the smell of smoke is entering your home".

I have links to their websites on the blog www.cleanairforwoodstock.blogspot.ca.
Thanks again for your attention to this.

Reply to Connie Lauder

Hello Councillor Lauder
Thank you for your reply to my concerns.

I am not asking you, or city staff, to waste time in analyzing other municipalities' motivations for allowing or not allowing open air burning.

I am asking you to apply your intellect to the issue.

There are TWO public safety concerns related to open air burning:  1) fire safety; 2) air quality.  The former has been apparent to mankind since fire first was tamed; the latter has become apparent only in recent years, but is now well documented.

Oxford County Public Health lists the pollutants produced when wood is burned, and some of the health effects, followed by the recommendation: Do not burn wood:
www.oxfordcounty.ca/Healthy-places/Air-Quality/Open-air-burning

The Lung Association has posted an expert opinion on residential wood burning:
www.lung.ca/news/expert-opinions/pollution/residential-wood-burning

The Government of Ontario informs us about fine particulate matter:
www.airqualityontario.com/science/pollutants/particulates.php

and provides us with the Air Quality Health Index:
www.airqualityontario.com/aqhi/

The Government of Canada tells us to avoid wood smoke:
healthycanadians.gc.ca/healthy-living-vie-saine/environment-environnement/air/contaminants/wood-smoke-fumee-bois-eng.php

The Public Health Agency of Canada warns those with chronic respiratory diseases:
www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/cd-mc/crd-mrc/index-eng.php

Ultimately there is one question: is it safe to breathe wood smoke?
The answer is a resounding NO.

It's just like second-hand tobacco smoke.  Our society protects us from smokers in stores, workplaces, airplanes, trains, buses, restaurants, bars (even on patios!), but it is legal here in Woodstock for my neighbours to light a fire and fill my home (MY NON-SMOKING HOME!) with smoke.

To conclude: rather than researching other cities' bylaws, perhaps staff could attempt to find some reputable sources that would assure us that it is safe for all residents (including newborns, active toddlers, seniors with heart problems, and those of any age who suffer from COPD, asthma, or allergies) to be inhaling wood smoke?
If such sources can't be found, we should not be burning wood in backyards.

Thank you for your attention to this.

A message from the Government of Canada (e-mail to Council, July 3, 2016)

It's another smoky night in my neighbourhood, with multiple fire pits burning.  Ditto last night.

Could you spare a moment to read what your federal government has to say about wood smoke?

http://healthycanadians.gc.ca/healthy-living-vie-saine/environment-environnement/air/contaminants/wood-smoke-fumee-bois-eng.php

"Avoid wood smoke

The main pollutants in wood smoke that cause health concerns are:

• Particulate matter - This is the term for solid or liquid particles found in the air, which help create smog. They can be very small and can travel deep into your lungs, causing breathing and heart problems.
• Carbon monoxide (CO) - This is a colourless, odourless gas that is poisonous at high levels. It can make you feel sick and even kill you.
• Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) - These are a wide range of compounds that usually have no colour, taste or smell. Some cause direct health effects, while others contribute to smog.
• Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) - These compounds are a health concern because they can cause cancer."

Do you have no concern for the poisoning of the local air, due to the Open Air Burning Bylaw?

As always, I would appreciate a reply acknowledging that you have read this.   

Replies:
Sandra Talbot, Shawn Shapton, Jerry Acchione, Connie Lauder

How bad will our air be tonight? (E-mail to Councillors sent June 25)

Today the Air Quality Health Index forecasts  a "moderate risk" reading of 4 all around Woodstock: London, Brantford, Kitchener, and Guelph.  See it at:
www.airqualityontario.com
How many homes in Woodstock will light their fire pits this evening...dozens? hundreds?
How bad will our local air be?
Given that wood smoke pollutes the air the length of a couple of football fields around each fire, how many vulnerable people will be exposed to dangerous levels of pollutants?
How many infants?
How many kids with asthma?
How many seniors with heart conditions?
How many people with COPD?
These are some of the most vulnerable populations, but of course wood smoke, like second-hand tobacco smoke, is bad for everyone.
What credibility does Woodstock have on ANY health or environmental issue, when you allow open air burning?
As always, I would appreciate an acknowledgement that you have read this.
Thanks for your attention.

REPLIES: Jerry Acchione, Sandra Talbot

E-mail to Woodstock Councillors, sent Friday June 24, 2016

I hope that you have read my latest UR opinion piece on the Sentinel Review's website (Too bad about Clean Air Day), and that you took time to consider the excerpts from the UPHE.

You are probably aware that there was a Special Air Quality Statement issued for much of southern Ontario including Oxford County on Sunday June 19.  I trust that you are familiar with www.airqualityontario.com.

I have two questions for you today:

1) When our background air pollution is typically in the 3-5 range on the AQHI, to what level might the index rise near a burning fire pit?

2) Officials are held accountable when local water supplies are poisoned (e.g. Walkerton, Flint  Michigan).  Why is poisoning of the air different?
(Remember that most open air burning is prohibited under the Ontario Fire Code, and that fire pits are legal in Woodstock only because the previous Council passed a by-law in 2013.)

As always, I would be pleased to hear back from you.

I hope that you enjoy your weekend, and that you have clean air to breathe.

NO REPLIES RECEIVED.

Too bad about Clean Air Day. :-(

Wednesday June 8, 2016 is Clean Air Day, part of Canadian Environment Week.   From Environment and Climate Change Canada's website we learn that:

"Clean Air Day raises awareness and encourages action on clean air and climate change issues.  Canadians can show their commitment by participating in activities that contribute to cleaner air, healthier comunities and a better quality of life for all."

The day used to appear on Woodstock's City Services Calendar, but seems to have been dropped from this year's edition.
The omission is hardly surprising, given that Woodstock allows one of the dirtiest air-related practices imaginable: open air burning.

So, in honour of Clean Air Day, here are some excerpts from "17 reasons to ban wood burning", by the Utah Physicians for a Healthy Environment:

"1. Wood smoke is the most toxic type of pollution in most cities, more dangerous than auto pollution and most industrial pollution.  Lighting a wood fire...is like starting up your own toxic incinerator."

 "8. If you smell wood smoke, you know you are being harmed.  The sweet smell comes from deadly compounds like benzene."

"16. People should have just as much protection from wood smoke as from cigarette smoke and for all the same reasons."

Clean Air Day is obviously too embarrassing an occasion to be noticed by Woodstock Council - at least as long as we have an Open Air Burning Bylaw on the books.

The above text appeared as a UR Opinion post on the Sentinel Review's website on May 29, 2016.

A second letter to WEAC

Dear WEAC
I would like to bring to your attention two more items related to wood smoke:

1) the article by Sarah MacWhirter entitled: The quest for cleaner fire, published in the Globe and Mail on Feb. 17, 2016:
www.theglobeandmail.com/life/home-and-garden/design/the-quest-for-cleaner-fire-why-its-time-to-rethink-our-favourite-way-to-get-warm/article28780027/

2) The Code of Practice for Residential Wood Burning Appliances, by the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment, 2012.
www.ccme.ca/files/Resources/air/wood_burning/pn_1479_wood_burning_code_eng.pdf

Thank you again for your consideration; I hope you get a quorum at your next meeting.