Point Reyes Light - September 26, 2002

Limits proposed on woodstoves

By Ivan Gale

Marin County officials and air-quality experts will be among the speakers at a public meeting scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Monday, Sept. 30 at the Dance Palace to explain a proposed county-wide ordinance restricting wood-burning appliances and fireplaces.

Liza Crosse, aide to Supervisor Steve Kinsey, said the issue is still in the "ideas and information-gathering stage," and hopes the meeting will prompt the public to start thinking about controlling the use of wood stoves.

Efforts to improve wood smoke emissions, a project developed by Kinsey with the aid of a Drake High intern, would not likely ban wood-burning stoves nor require replacement of stoves that did not comply with county guidelines, said Crosse.

Kinsey’s ordinance focus

Instead, Kinsey’s ordinance would focus on:

• Requiring uncertified appliances in existing construction to be replaced with EPA accepted appliances.

• Prohibition of traditional masonry fireplaces in new construction.

• Greater emphasis on controlled-burn days or volunteer "spare the air" days.

• Educating the public on impacts of wood smoke and clean wood-burning appliances.

Jenny Bard, spokeswoman for the American Lung Association, is in favor of such an ordinance. She has received numerous calls from residents in Marin with breathing problems due to wood smoke hanging in the air in towns such as Woodacre, Fairfax and San Anselmo. "Wood smoke can trigger breathing problems in people who have sensitive lung conditions such as asthma or emphysema," she noted.

Ordinance needed

Woodacre resident Ken Naffziger, also in favor of restrictions, said even though he acknowledges people have an emotional attachment to their wood-burning stoves, some kind of ordinance is needed, especially to control heavy use during "extended cold snaps" during winter.

"I don’t know what the answer is, but from a health standpoint, something needs to be done. It’s thick and it’s choking," said Naffziger.

West Marin residents outside the San Geronimo Valley, however, were more ambivalent on the proposed restrictions. Pierce Point dairyman Bob McClure noted, "We usually get pretty good air flow out at the point so it doesn’t concern me very much." He said he doesn’t use a wood-burning stove much but that he’d like to hear "the pros and cons" of the issue as well.

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