References for Wood Smoke Brochure
3/23/03 One of Ameica's largest sources of pollution that is responsible for 30,000 deaths each year
[1]
[2]
[3]
[4]
Pellet
Stove
Oil
Furnace
Gas
Emission Comparisons of Different
Heating Fuels
A wood stove is over 500 times dirtier than a
modern oil burner and a 1000 times dirtier
than heating with gas! (Pugent Sound Air Pollution Control Agency, WA, USA 1996)
Heating with a wood
stove for one season generates as much pollution
as driving a car 130,000 miles.
[5]
Kerosene
Gas
Electric
Solar Wind
The Energy Pyramid
(cleanest fuel at the top to the dirtiest fuel at the bottom)
Kirk Smith, Ph.D, University of CA at Berkeley,
[6]
2 With all of this information,
wouldn't you think that
every child might:
Live in a smoke-free and clean energy,
non-wood-burning home and learn in a smokefree
environment.
Expect education, athletic and recreation
facilities to be smoke-free, so that scholastic
and athletic achievements are not limited by
uncontrolled asthma and lost school days due to
infections.
Be cared for by a supportive physician
who explains to parents and teachers the dangers
of wood smoke and tobacco smoke and
their role in causing: asthma, immune system
damage leading to auto-immune diseases,
respiratory damage, increased risk of infection,
aggravation of heart disease, and cancer.
[7]
[8]
[9]
[10]
[11]
[12]
Learn self-management skills to minimize
exposure to smoke and to have confidence
they will not be exposed to hazardous combustion
toxins contained in tobacco smoke and
wood smoke whether at home, school or play.
Expect adults entrusted with their care
to understand how to handle pollution emergencies
and expect public guardians to protect them
from smoke and other hazardous pollutants.
[13]
3 In the last 10 years the number of children
suffering from asthma has doubled.
According to a survey by the CDC, one
child in seven (8.6 million nationwide) has been
diagnosed with asthma, and the numbers have
been growing at an alarming rate. It is the most
common childhood disease and the leading
cause of absenteeism from school.
[14]
[15]
[16]
[17]
[18]
[19]
[20]
[21]
The largest single source of outdoor
fi ne particles (PM2.5) in many American and Canadian cities
is our neighbor's fi replace or wood stove.
[22]
[23]
[24]
[4]
[25]
[26]
[27]
The
particulate matter in wood smoke is so small
that closed doors and windows cannot stop it
from entering, even in newer energy-effi cient
weather-tight homes. 90% of wood smoke
is in the tiny size particle range (PM2.5)
averaging less than 1 micron (one millionth of
a meter), [4] [28]
allowing the fi ne particles to remain
airborne for up to 3 weeks. [4]
The particles are so
small that they can penetrate into the deepest
recesses of the lungs.
[4]
These particles become
effi cient vehicles for transporting toxic gases,
bacteria and viruses deep into the lungs where
they do the most damage and cannot be coughed
up, and from where the chemicals pass directly
into the blood stream.
[4]
[29]
Tobacco smoke and wood smoke are
very similar in chemical composition.
[4]
[30]
Breathing
the chemicals and gases of wood smoke
and tobacco smoke has been linked not only to
health problems, but also to substance abuse.
[4]
[31]
[32]
[33]
There is concern that children from areas with
high levels of wood smoke may be more likely
to begin smoking tobacco. [34]
Homes in wood burning areas also have
increased rates of low birth weight and Sudden
Infant Death Syndrome, (SIDS).
[35]
We can reduce our children's exposure
to toxic pollutants by taking very simple measures
in our daily lives: avoiding the use of
wood burning appliances and tobacco. Many
lives could be saved at little or no cost.
For more information, full references, and
links to EPA data please visit:
4What's in Wood Smoke?
Wood smoke contains over 100 different
chemicals and compounds, including
dioxin, as well as lead, cadmium and arsenic.
Below is a partial list:
*+carbon monoxide, methane, VOCs (C2-C7),
*aldehydes, +formaldehyde, *+acrolein, +propionaldehyde,
butyl aldehyde, +acetaldehyde,
furfural, substituted furans, +benzene, +alkyl
benzenes, +toluene, acetic acid, formic acid,
*nitrogen oxides (NO, NO2), *sulfur dioxide,
+methyl chloride, +naphthalene, +substituted
naphthalenes, oxygenated monoaromatics,
guaiacol (and derivatives), *+phenol (and
derivatives), syringol (and derivatives), +catechol
(and derivatives), *+particulate organic
carbon, oxygenated polycyclic aromatic
hydrocarbons, +PAHs: fl uorene, phenanthrene,
+anthracene, methylanthracenes, +fl uoranthene,
*+pyrene, +benzo(a)anthracene, +chrysene,
+benzofl uoranthenes, *+benzo(e)pyrene,
*+benzo(a)pyrene, *perylene, +ideno(1,2,3-
cd)pyrene, *benz(ghi)perylene, *coronene,
+dibenzo(a,h)pyrene, retene,
dibenz(a,h)anthracene, trace elements: Na, Mg,
Al, Si, S, Cl, K, Ca, Ti, V, +Cr, +Mn, Fe, +Ni,
Cu, Zn, Br, +Pb; particulate elemental carbon,
normal alkanes (C24-C30), cyclic di-and triterpenoids,
dehydroabietic acid, isopimaric acid,
lupenone, friedelin, +chlorinated dioxins
* Indicates a chemical also found in cigarette smoke
+Indicates a chemical that is classifi ed as toxic by U.S. Law
[30] [36]
Wood Smoke Chemical Composition ! Indicates a chemical present in both wood smoke and tobacco smoke
! Indicates a hazardous chemical for which ATSDR has prepared a toxicological profile O Indicates a chemical classified as a carcinogen by the US government " Indicates a chemical that is one of the Top 20 CERCLA priority hazardous substances 1-275 Indicates position on the CERCLA priority hazardous substances list
ALL CHEMICALS LISTED BELOW ARE REPORTED PRESENT IN WOOD SMOKE
! ! 198 carbon monoxide, 66 methane, volatile organic compounds
(C 2 -C 7 ), aldehydes: ! ! O 245 formaldehyde, ! ! 72 acrolein,
propionaldehyde, butyraldehyde, ! acetaldehyde, furfural;
substituted furans, ! ! O " 6 benzene, alkyl benzenes: ! ! O 68 toluene,
! acetic acid, ! formic acid; ! ! nitrogen oxides (NO, NO 2 ),
! sulfur dioxide, ! methyl chloride, ! ! 77 naphthalene, ! substituted
naphthalenes, oxygenated monoaromatics: guaiacol (and
derivatives), ! ! 162 phenol (and derivatives), syringol (and
derivatives), ! catechol (and derivatives); particulate organic carbon,
oxygenated polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, !" 9 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons: ! ! 270 fluorene, ! ! 219 phenanthrene, ! ! anthracene, methylanthracenes,
! ! 106 fluoranthene, ! ! 249 pyrene, ! ! O 34 benzo(a)anthracene,
! ! 117 chrysene, ! ! O " 10 60 70 benzofluoranthenes, ! benzo(e)pyrene,
! ! O " 8 benzo(a)pyrene, ! perylene, ! ! O 180 indeno(1,2,3-cd)
pyrene, ! benzo(ghi)perylene, coronene, ! O dibenzo(a,h)pyrene,
retene, ! ! O " 16 dibenz(a,h)anthracene; trace elements: Sodium,
Magnesium, ! 186 Aluminum, Silicon, Sulfur, 96 Chlorine, Potassium,
Calcium, Titanium, ! 197 Vanadium, ! ! O Chromium,
! 138 Manganese, Iron, ! ! O 53 Nickel, ! Copper, ! 73 Zinc, Bromine,
! ! O " 2 Lead; particulate elemental carbon, normal alkanes
(C 24 -C 30 ), cyclic di-and triterpenoids, dehydroabietic acid,
isopimaric acid, lupenone, friedelin, ! O chlorinated dioxins
Sources: Larson TV and Koenig JQ. 1994. Wood Smoke: Emissions and Noncancer Respiratory Effects.
Table 1, Chemical composition of wood smoke. Annual Review of Public Health, v.15, p.136-137.
[37]
[38]
[39]
5 Breathing in wood smoke
is comparable to inhaling
second-hand cigarette smoke.
Many of the pollutants are similar to
those produced by burning tobacco. The EPA
estimates that wood smoke is 12 times more
carcinogenic than equal amounts of tobacco
smoke and attacks our body cells up to 40
times longer than tobacco smoke.
[5]
[30]
[40]
A single fi replace operating for an hour
and burning 10 pounds of wood during that time
will generate 4,300 times more carcinogenic
polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons than 30 cigarettes.
[5]
[41]
The threat to human health comes
from the fi ne particulate matter - tiny particles
1/200th the size of a raindrop. Inhaling
wood smoke particulate matter increases the
incidence, duration and severity of respiratory
disease, striking hardest at children,
the elderly and those with lung or heart disorders.
[4],
[42]
[43]
[44]
[9]
[8]
The EPA warns that there is no safe
level of these carcinogens.
US EPA [5]
[45]
[3]
Fireplaces and wood stoves are estimated
to be the origin of 35% of fine-particle
pollution as a national average. [4]
Each pound of
wood burned costs the entire community $2 in
increased medical costs and lost work days.
That is equivalent to $40 for an average fi re
burning 20 pounds of wood. [46]
Air pollutants also cause immune system
damage, which can lead to asthma, allergies and
auto-immune diseases.
[47]
[48]
[11]
Air pollutants have also
been linked to psychological disorders and
toxic damage to the nervous system and the
brain, especially in developing fetuses or young
children.
[4]
[49]
[50]
The number of deaths attributed to particulate
pollution exceeds the number of deaths
from major cancers like breast cancer and prostate
cancer and exceeds the deaths occurring
from auto accidents by more than 50%.
methane
formaldehyde
sulfur dioxide
benzene toluene
naphthalene
phenol
aldehydes
carbon monoxide
acrolein
propionaldehyde acetaldehyde
alkyl benzenes
methyl chloride
catechol particulate organic carbon
PAHs
benzo(a)pyrene
chlorinated dioxins
anthracene
fluoranthene
pyrene
benzo(a)anthracene
chrysene
benzofluoranthenes
benzo(e)pyrene
6 Wood smoke is more than
a nuisance, it is a severe
health hazard!
England has banned wood and coal
burning in towns since 1956.
The Supreme
Court of Iowa declared in 1998 that government
bodies do not have the right to allow burning
resulting in smoke crossing property lines.
[51]
We
have healthier heating and cooking options.
Re-establish the right of every citizen
in this country to breathe clean air and not be
detrimentally impacted by fi ne particulate pollution.
[52]
As population densities increase, wood
burning becomes even more inappropriate
because smoke toxins cannot be prevented from
crossing property lines. [4]
Indoor PM2.5 levels[53]
from wood smoke in homes without wood
stoves reach at least 50-70% of outdoor levels.
When your neighbor is burning wood, deadly
pollutants are inside your house as well.
[53]
Protect yourself and your children.
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22. Fairley, D., et al., Results from the 1991-92 Pilot Study of Wintertime PM10 in the San Francisco Bay Area, . 1992, Bay Area Air Quality Management District, Technical Memorandum: San Francisco, CA.
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51. IOWA, S.C.O. and , No. 192 / 96-2276: taking of private property for public use without just compensation in violation of federal and Iowa constitutional provisions, . 1998, LAVORATO, Justice.
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