What is the Environmental Impact of Burning Wood?

[2LaneCruzer]

Where did I ever direct a post toward YOU before YOU elected to pick me out of this hodgepodge line up 2LANE?

Maybe you'd happy with the ribbon clerks tape measure your wife may have........ I'm not.

Your repudiation was positioned immediately after my post, such that one would reasonably conclude that it was either in reply to, or in response thereto. Didn't mean to get your blood pressure up, but the comprehension part is up to you. My apologies for mentioning my wife's tape measure; it was just my way of gently saying that we could go on to something else if you choose to do so.

 

[2LaneCruzer]

I am curious as to what TBN'ers have to do to obtain permission for the outdoor burning of vegetative debris (leaves, limbs, etc.) in their respective states.

Weather permitting (i.e., no bans due to forest-fire risks), I can obtain a one-day permit via an automated phone system in SC and a multi-day permit via online application in NC. Both situations are outside city limits.

The application processes differ for controlled burns of forest tracts.

Steve

In this state, the burning of leaves, limbs and such is exempted from the state regulations, provided that the material is generated on the land where it is burned. That does not exempt you from getting a permit, if required, from the local fire department or municipality.

 

[rsallen]

Ya see that's the thing;
Your initial post was so vanilla it never even showed up on my radar.

The post was directed to the Tractor Net community at large.
And they can take that post for it's worth but it wasn't toward anyone directly.

 

[/pine]

...positioned immediately after my post, such that one would reasonably conclude that it was either in reply to, or in response thereto....

Not always the case...especially on longer threads...

 

[MossRoad]

I've been using a cat stove for five years and love it. Looking up at the chimney you just see steam coming out and you don't smell any smoke. Yeah, its more work to maintain--it's a little more technical to operate and you have to replace the seals and catalytic combuster every few years, but the heat output is excellent and if it saves me from cutting, splitting, lugging, stacking, and burning an extra cord or two of firewood a year then it's worth it to me.

Steam?

 

[MossRoad]

I am curious as to what TBN'ers have to do to obtain permission for the outdoor burning of vegetative debris (leaves, limbs, etc.) in their respective states.

Weather permitting (i.e., no bans due to forest-fire risks), I can obtain a one-day permit via an automated phone system in SC and a multi-day permit via online application in NC. Both situations are outside city limits.

The application processes differ for controlled burns of forest tracts.

Steve

This is the first year we've had a leaf burning ban in our county. I love it! There are now two weeks when you can legally burn leaves. Otherwise, you have to wait for county pickup, or bag them, or compost them in your yard. My mom died from an aneurism triggered by an asthma attack on a very smoky day in November of 1987. Watching her suffer with asthma over the last few years of her life, we realized that leaf burning is bad juju for people and stopped the practice that we use to consider a rite of fall.

 

[dave1949]

This used by 16 towns in Maine. MO is a choice too, but I didn't look to see how many towns.

I suppose you could ask the local fire chief about something like a multi-day permit. Or, he may say apply for one each day depending on the weather and current fire danger levels.

I've had many fires here that down to a bed of coals by midnight but are still hot in the morning. I've also started any time during the day too. I don't think it is rigidly enforced.

Rules and Regulations

Terms of Authorization for Permitted Burns

A permit is granted in good faith that the fire is carefully watched and controlled by a sufficient force of adults and adequate equipment. You shall be liable for suppression costs if the fire escapes due to negligence or not following the safety requirements listed on the permit document. All open burning shall be in conformity to existing laws and regulations of the Maine Forest Service, Department of Environmental Protection and local municipal ordinances. In accordance with Title 12 statutes, the out-of-door burning of plastic, Styrofoam, metals, food wastes, chemicals, treated wood or other solid wastes, except for wood wastes, is prohibited in all areas of the State. Any person who engages in out of door burning and who fails to comply with any stated permit conditions or restrictions, commits a Class E crime.

You must be at least 18 to obtain an Open Burning Permit.
No Burning until after 5pm M-F and All Day Saturday and Sunday.
It is illegal to burn without a permit in the state of Maine.
You must sign the permit and have it in your possession while burning.
If someone complains, we are obligated to investigate and possibly extinguish any fire.
All fires must be extinguished by midnight on the permitted date.
You may not start a fire with ANY accelerant.
You may not burn man-made materials, such as: paper, cardboard, or plastics.
You may not burn tires, combustibles, or manufactured wood materials (ie.. pressure treated or finished wood).
You may not burn rubbish, refuse, or garbage.
You may not burn Demolition debris: insulation, rubber, styrofoam, metal, chemicals, sheetrock, asphalt shingles, or wire insulation).

 

[MossRoad]

For those of you that think its a wash to burn or let rot, you are sadly mistaken. When things like wood are burned, carcinogens are formed and released into the air for folks to suck into their lungs. Those same carcinogens are NOT created during the natural decomposition of wood. And the smokier the fire, the more contaminants and particulate matter are released into the air for people to breath into their lungs. That's why new technology cleaner burning stoves and boilers are the way to go. They consume more of the contaminants and particulate matter before they are released into the air.

 

[Ken]

To keep it simple, if I burn 100 pounds of wood in my stove, what happens to each of those 100 pounds? Ken Sweet

Ken the same thing that happens when giving money to the IRS. Poof up the chimney it goes.
ken

 

[Katahdin]

What brand and model stove do you have?

I have a Sierra 8000 TEC, which I mail ordered and installed. Its a big sucker and weighs over 400 lbs all put together and takes a 28 inch log. It's a great stove for its size and price. I have a minor complaint about the quality of the hinge welds, but overall we're very pleased with it.

Some thoughts on other topics in this thread. Maine does require fire permits for open burning from the local Fire Department but I think that has more to do with preventing forest fires in dry conditions than anything.

EPA regulations, well, if all the air in the 1950s and 60s was clean to breath I don't think Richard Nixon would have forced that agency upon us by Executive Order. FYI, for all his faults, I am a Nixon fan and the EPA already has meddled with small woodstove burners to some extent. If anything I like the newer woodstoves because they are more efficient and I burn less wood, the cleaner air thing to me is just an added bonus. I have mixed feelings about wood boilers, however. My neighbor has one just over just 100 yards away, I'm not sure if it's EPA Phase 1 compliant, or pre-EPA, but it's one or the other. It can be a nuisance when its starting up or burning down and visible smoke drifts over into my yard at eye level. I'm more tolerant of it than my wife is, but boy if his older model wood boiler burned a little cleaner it would be one less thing for my wife to be angry about!