It seems that even wood isnt green or renewable enough anymore. The EPA has recently banned the production and sale of 80 percent of Americas current wood-burning stoves, the oldest heating method known to mankind and mainstay of rural homes and many of our nations poorest residents. The agencys stringent one-size-fits-all rules apply equally to heavily air-polluted cities and far cleaner plus typically colder off-grid wilderness areas such as large regions of Alaska and the American West.
An Uncritical View Of EPA: Why I Agree With Obama
Larry BellLarry Bell
Contributor
While EPAs most recent regulations arent altogether new, their impacts will nonetheless be severe. Whereas restrictions had previously banned wood-burning stoves that didnt limit fine airborne particulate emissions to 15 micrograms per cubic meter of air, the change will impose a maximum 12 microgram limit. To put this amount in context, EPA estimates that secondhand tobacco smoke in a closed car can expose a person to 3,000-4,000 micrograms of particulates per cubic meter.
Most wood stoves that warm cabin and home residents from coast-to-coast cant meet that standard. Older stoves that dont cannot be traded in for updated types, but instead must be rendered inoperable, destroyed, or recycled as scrap metal.
The impacts of EPAs ruling will affect many families. According to the U.S. Census Bureaus 2011 survey statistics, 2.4 million American housing units (12 percent of all homes) burned wood as their primary heating fuel, compared with 7 percent that depended upon fuel oil.
Local governments in some states have gone even further than EPA, not only banning the sale of noncompliant stoves, but even their use as fireplaces. As a result, owners face fines for infractions. Puget Sound, Washington is one such location. Montréal, Canada proposes to eliminate all fireplaces within its city limits.
For complete article: http://www.forbes.com/sites/larrybe...-chilling-consequences-for-many-rural-people/
An Uncritical View Of EPA: Why I Agree With Obama
Larry BellLarry Bell
Contributor
While EPAs most recent regulations arent altogether new, their impacts will nonetheless be severe. Whereas restrictions had previously banned wood-burning stoves that didnt limit fine airborne particulate emissions to 15 micrograms per cubic meter of air, the change will impose a maximum 12 microgram limit. To put this amount in context, EPA estimates that secondhand tobacco smoke in a closed car can expose a person to 3,000-4,000 micrograms of particulates per cubic meter.
Most wood stoves that warm cabin and home residents from coast-to-coast cant meet that standard. Older stoves that dont cannot be traded in for updated types, but instead must be rendered inoperable, destroyed, or recycled as scrap metal.
The impacts of EPAs ruling will affect many families. According to the U.S. Census Bureaus 2011 survey statistics, 2.4 million American housing units (12 percent of all homes) burned wood as their primary heating fuel, compared with 7 percent that depended upon fuel oil.
Local governments in some states have gone even further than EPA, not only banning the sale of noncompliant stoves, but even their use as fireplaces. As a result, owners face fines for infractions. Puget Sound, Washington is one such location. Montréal, Canada proposes to eliminate all fireplaces within its city limits.
For complete article: http://www.forbes.com/sites/larrybe...-chilling-consequences-for-many-rural-people/
