mick silver
8th March 2015, 01:05 PM
Some States Fight to Keep Their Wood Fires BurningJEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Mar 8, 2015, 11:39 AM ET
By DAVID A. LIEB Associated Press
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16 Comments (http://abcnews.go.com/Health/wireStory/states-fight-wood-fires-burning-29481533#disqus_thread)
http://a.abcnews.com/images/Health/WireAP_2edfd966c7554af18b1fa64457fdefe5_16x9_992.j pgFILE - In this Feb. 21, 2014 file photo, wood burns in the stove Darwin Woods uses to heat both water and his home in Clark, Mo. Citing health concerns, the Environmental Protection Agency now is pressing ahead with new regulations to significantly... View Full Caption (javascript:void(0);) The Associated Press
FILE - In this Feb. 21, 2014 file photo, wood burns in the stove Darwin Woods uses to heat both water and his home in Clark, Mo. Citing health concerns, the Environmental Protection Agency now is pressing ahead with new regulations to significantly limit the pollution from residential wood heaters. But some of the states with the most wood smoke are refusing to go along, claiming that the EPA’s rules could leave low-income residents in the cold. (AP Photo/L.G. Patterson, File) Close (javascript:void(0);) The Associated Press
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Smoke wafting from wood fires has long provided a familiar winter smell in many parts of the country — and, in some cases, a foggy haze that has filled people's lungs with fine particles that can cause coughing and wheezing.
Citing health concerns, the Environmental Protection Agency (http://abcnews.go.com/topics/news/us/environmental-protection-agency.htm) now is pressing ahead with regulations to significantly limit the pollution from newly manufactured residential wood heaters. But some of the states with the most wood smoke are refusing to go along, claiming that the EPA's new rules could leave low-income residents in the cold.
Missouri and Michigan already have barred their environmental agencies from enforcing the EPA standards. Similar measures recently passed Virginia's legislature and are pending in at least three other states, even though residents in some places say the rules don't do enough to clear the air.
It's been a harsh winter for many people, particularly those in regions repeatedly battered by snow. And the EPA's new rules are stoking fears that some residents won't be able to afford new stoves when their older models give out.
"People have been burning wood since the beginning of recorded time," said Phillip Todd, 59, who uses a wood-fired furnace to heat his home in Holts Summit. "They're trying to regulate it out of existence, I believe, and they really have no concern about the economic consequences or the hardship it's going to cause."
Others contend the real hardship has fallen on neighbors forced to breathe the smoke from winter wood fires.
The EPA typically relies on states to carry out its air quality standards. But states may not be able to effectively thwart the wood-burning rules, because federal regulators could step in to do the job if local officials don't.
"If the EPA wants to come in here and enforce it, come on in. (But) I'm not going to help them," said Michigan state Sen. Tom Casperson, whose law barring state enforcement of the EPA regulations takes effect March 31.
About 10 percent of U.S. households burn wood, and the number relying on it as their primary heating source rose by nearly a third from 2005 to 2012, the latest year for which federal figures were available.
The EPA's new rules, which are to be phased in over five years, apply only to new wood heaters and won't force anyone to get rid of their older models.
The EPA estimates the restrictions will reduce fine particle emissions from wood heaters by nearly 70 percent. It says that will result in an average of one fewer premature death per day and yield about $100 of public health benefits for every $1 of additional cost to manufacturers.
The rules mark the first update since 1988 for indoor wood stoves, which include both free-standing models and ones that fit inside traditional fireplaces. The EPA also is imposing its first-ever emission mandates on wood-fired furnaces and outdoor boilers, which use fire to heat water that is circulated through pipes to warm homes.
Nine states and dozens of communities already had required cleaner emissions for outdoor wood-fired boilers before the EPA acted, according to the Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association.
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2 (http://abcnews.go.com/Health/wireStory/states-fight-wood-fires-burning-29481533?page=2)
By DAVID A. LIEB Associated Press
(javascript:void(0);)
16 Comments (http://abcnews.go.com/Health/wireStory/states-fight-wood-fires-burning-29481533#disqus_thread)
http://a.abcnews.com/images/Health/WireAP_2edfd966c7554af18b1fa64457fdefe5_16x9_992.j pgFILE - In this Feb. 21, 2014 file photo, wood burns in the stove Darwin Woods uses to heat both water and his home in Clark, Mo. Citing health concerns, the Environmental Protection Agency now is pressing ahead with new regulations to significantly... View Full Caption (javascript:void(0);) The Associated Press
FILE - In this Feb. 21, 2014 file photo, wood burns in the stove Darwin Woods uses to heat both water and his home in Clark, Mo. Citing health concerns, the Environmental Protection Agency now is pressing ahead with new regulations to significantly limit the pollution from residential wood heaters. But some of the states with the most wood smoke are refusing to go along, claiming that the EPA’s rules could leave low-income residents in the cold. (AP Photo/L.G. Patterson, File) Close (javascript:void(0);) The Associated Press
http://a.abcnews.com/assets/images/logo/AP_logo_update_20130709.gif
Smoke wafting from wood fires has long provided a familiar winter smell in many parts of the country — and, in some cases, a foggy haze that has filled people's lungs with fine particles that can cause coughing and wheezing.
Citing health concerns, the Environmental Protection Agency (http://abcnews.go.com/topics/news/us/environmental-protection-agency.htm) now is pressing ahead with regulations to significantly limit the pollution from newly manufactured residential wood heaters. But some of the states with the most wood smoke are refusing to go along, claiming that the EPA's new rules could leave low-income residents in the cold.
Missouri and Michigan already have barred their environmental agencies from enforcing the EPA standards. Similar measures recently passed Virginia's legislature and are pending in at least three other states, even though residents in some places say the rules don't do enough to clear the air.
It's been a harsh winter for many people, particularly those in regions repeatedly battered by snow. And the EPA's new rules are stoking fears that some residents won't be able to afford new stoves when their older models give out.
"People have been burning wood since the beginning of recorded time," said Phillip Todd, 59, who uses a wood-fired furnace to heat his home in Holts Summit. "They're trying to regulate it out of existence, I believe, and they really have no concern about the economic consequences or the hardship it's going to cause."
Others contend the real hardship has fallen on neighbors forced to breathe the smoke from winter wood fires.
The EPA typically relies on states to carry out its air quality standards. But states may not be able to effectively thwart the wood-burning rules, because federal regulators could step in to do the job if local officials don't.
"If the EPA wants to come in here and enforce it, come on in. (But) I'm not going to help them," said Michigan state Sen. Tom Casperson, whose law barring state enforcement of the EPA regulations takes effect March 31.
About 10 percent of U.S. households burn wood, and the number relying on it as their primary heating source rose by nearly a third from 2005 to 2012, the latest year for which federal figures were available.
The EPA's new rules, which are to be phased in over five years, apply only to new wood heaters and won't force anyone to get rid of their older models.
The EPA estimates the restrictions will reduce fine particle emissions from wood heaters by nearly 70 percent. It says that will result in an average of one fewer premature death per day and yield about $100 of public health benefits for every $1 of additional cost to manufacturers.
The rules mark the first update since 1988 for indoor wood stoves, which include both free-standing models and ones that fit inside traditional fireplaces. The EPA also is imposing its first-ever emission mandates on wood-fired furnaces and outdoor boilers, which use fire to heat water that is circulated through pipes to warm homes.
Nine states and dozens of communities already had required cleaner emissions for outdoor wood-fired boilers before the EPA acted, according to the Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association.
Page
1
|
2 (http://abcnews.go.com/Health/wireStory/states-fight-wood-fires-burning-29481533?page=2)