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The Price for Nostalgia
Shiban Khan
 When
the thermometer drops below freezing and keeps dipping further, curling
up next to a crackling fireplace with hot chocolate and a good book
may indeed seem like paradise. The warm glowing fire can bring back
fond memories, making us long for the wholesome living of yesteryears.
However, this nostalgia comes with an intrinsic price that some may
find too high to pay.
Residential wood smoke is one of the major sources of particulate
matter air pollution in the country, according to EPA. These microscopic
particulate matters cannot be filtered out by our nose and upper respiratory
system and end up deep down in the lungs, where they can cause severe
permanent damages. Apart from irritating eyes, lungs and throat, wood
smoke contributes to asthma, bronchitis, sinus problems, emphysema
and even lung cancer. Wood smoke contains over 100 chemicals, and
many of them are carcinogenic. During a high pollution day, when there
is heavy wood smoke in the neighborhood, the health effects are similar
to smoking 16 cigarettes a day, and the outdoor air can even be dirtier
than around industrial plants.
During winter months the heavy cold air restricts the movement of
the wood smoke, making it concentrate near the ground and reenter
our homes, exacerbating the pollution already existing there. Indoor
wood smoke pollution can reach up to 70 percent of the outside pollution
level even in homes that do not burn wood. Wood smoke is especially
hazardous to fetuses, infants, children and the elderly and aggravates
allergy suffering.
Seasoned hardwood that is purposefully prepared for heat generation
is a comparatively cleaner burning option. However, indiscriminate
burning of other materials (plastic, newspaper, plywood, painted/treated
wood) fans the flames of the predicament further, releasing toxic
chemicals in amounts comparable to a trash incinerator.
Is avoiding
wood-burning stoves and fireplaces altogether the only healthy option?
Probably yes, since there is no such thing as clean-burning wood.
Coal and pellet stoves are not viable options either, since they are
as polluting as wood is. For homeowners, the most plausible solution
is to cut back on wood stove use, and switch to a more efficient fuel.
Gas fireplaces are a cleaner option than wood. An even better option
is to heat your home with a renewable energy source, such as electricity
generated by windmills or solar panels. You can then get one of those
crackling fireplace videos to bring back the warm memories.
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