Which Causes More Pollution?

[Utopia Texas]

Having a debate with a neighbor. Which causes the most air pollution getting rid of thousands of small tree limbs every year. Burning in a brush pile or running a diesel tractor driven chipper for many hours? I do know burning is a lot easier/faster but with my Tier 4B tractor which pollutes less?

 

[Agvg]

If you burn you only releases what nature it self has created.
So in the big picture burning will be more friendly. If you talks about smoke and visual pollution chipping wins.

 

[bigtiller]

It depends which way the wind is blowing. If the wind is blowing the smoke from a fire to the neighbors house and the old guy there is not getting enough air from his nebulizer and has to go in the house and shut the windows just to breath, that would be worse than any tractor/chipper.

 

[motownbrowne]

Well, to some extent, "nature itself" created diesel fuel too, or at least the oil to make it. Burning green wood in a smokey fire is about as bad as it gets for particulate emissions. My preference would be to chip the material, then compost or bury the chips and sequester the carbon.

 

[Agvg]

Still a natural process, local smoke problems is of course an another type of pollution.

 

[KennyG]

If they are dry limbs, burning in a hot fire is probably best. If you have a need for compost, composting is fine, but you need to make sure you get enough air to it so it is aerobic composting. Anaerobic (insufficient oxygen) composting results in methane which is a much more potent greenhouse gas. (If you believe in that sort of thing.)

The diesel burned is probably a minor factor. I agree that smoky fires are bad.

 

[LD1]

Just let the small limbs and twigs rot/decay naturally. Anything big enough to be in the way, use for firewood. Leave the brush to rot.

There is a saying, that "the only wood that gets wasted is wood removed from the woods"

 

[hutchman]

Well, to some extent, "nature itself" created diesel fuel too, or at least the oil to make it. Burning green wood in a smokey fire is about as bad as it gets for particulate emissions. My preference would be to chip the material, then compost or bury the chips and sequester the carbon.

I think what he was getting at is burning wood is Co2 neutral. Trees suck up Co2 so burning wood just releases what the wood soaked up ... it isn't a producer of Co2.

 

[houstonscott]

Having a debate with a neighbor. Which causes the most air pollution getting rid of thousands of small tree limbs every year. Burning in a brush pile or running a diesel tractor driven chipper for many hours? I do know burning is a lot easier/faster but with my Tier 4B tractor which pollutes less?

The correct answer is neither produce pollution. HS

 

[Weedy Fields]

why not make brush piles, give cover for animals, allow the wood to rot decay. I have lots of these in the woods.