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burning of treated lumber and old telephone poles

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bender85

Junior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Illinois

I have been having a problem for some time on and off. Seems the private subdivision I live in continuously keeps burning toxic things behind my house on their maintenance area that I know isn't legal. I bought it up several times at board meetings and it seems to fall on deaf ears and some of the board members think they can just sneak and burn anyway. Today they were burning stumps with treated lumber on top with a couple of 5-6 ft telephone poles on top of this. As soon as I got home I could smell,feel and taste the toxic junk and smoke in my house and the air outside. I went over and sure enough they were burning. I called the health dept and they said call the county sheriff and they eventually called the fire dept to put it out. Since they have been periodically burning for the past 8-10 years I also have developed COPD and have to take 4 inhalers several times a day. What can I do to stop this from affecting my health and property. I know that those toxins in the ash and smoke don't go away and contaminate the property and ground. My local health dept is just about as useful as a brick. They went so far as to tell one ex board member that they wouldn't respond if I called them.
 


DAD10

Registered User
Waste from Preservative Manufacture /EPA Website

The main wastes generated by preservative manufacturing are chemical compounds formed during the manufacturing process and excess amounts of the preservatives themselves. Contact with some of these chemicals can be harmful to organisms at certain thresholds.

The wastes may be expelled into the atmosphere, carried away in waste water, or generate sludge. For example, during the manufacturing process of Penta, waste contaminants such as polychlorinated phenols, polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins, and polychlorinated dibenzofurans, are formed and may be released in to the environment outside the plant (ATSDR, 2001).

Traces of the preservative have also been detected in rainwater, fish, crops, and the human body (HazDat, 2001). In the creation of creosote, sludge is fixed, solidified, and covered with clay to limit further contamination (ATSDR, 2002).

Out of concern for the effects of these chemicals building up in the environment, preservatives such as Penta and Creosote have been banned in some European countries and restricted in the U.S. Currently the U.S. EPA limits the use of Penta, Creosote, and CCA to utility poles, pilings, and the like (ATSDR, 2001) in order to lessen public contact with the treated wood.
http://www.epa.com/
 

CJane

Senior Member
The main wastes generated by preservative manufacturing
What does the manufacturing of wood preservatives, and the impact on groundwater have to do with the burning of "treated" wood (which really, OP has no idea what it's treated WITH, or if at all)?

OP has COPD (formerly known as chronic bronchitis/emphysema). Does OP smoke? Has OP EVER smoked? Has OP been exposed to second hand smoke on a continuous/long term basis? Does OP have any other health issues? Is anyone else in the neighborhood ALSO suffering from COPD?

The most dangerous chemical that MIGHT be released when CCA treated lumber is burned is arsenic. Arsenic does not cause COPD, and one would have to be exposed to QUITE a lot of it for it to have an impact on one's health. Also, arsenic, when released from the wood, is not released in a gaseous form and so would not travel in the smoke and somehow "infect" OP's house. The arsenic would be found in highest concentration in the ash of the fire.

The same generally applies to the chemicals released from creosote treated wood. It is the ash that can be an issue, not the smoke.

OP's assertion that he could "smell" and "taste" the toxins in the air is just silly. While I'm sure the smell was not pleasant, a bad smell does not mean that "toxic" fumes are present (in fact, oftentimes, the reverse is true).

As to whether or not the actual burning is legal, it likely is NOT. But that is not because of WHAT is being burned, so much as because in Illinois, it is illegal to burn just about anything besides yard waste (leaves, branches, etc) if one lives within a mile of a town (of 1000 people or more).

The illegality of the burning does not = a cause of action on the part of the OP.
 

Mass_Shyster

Senior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Illinois

I have been having a problem for some time on and off. Seems the private subdivision I live in continuously keeps burning toxic things behind my house on their maintenance area that I know isn't legal. I bought it up several times at board meetings and it seems to fall on deaf ears and some of the board members think they can just sneak and burn anyway. Today they were burning stumps with treated lumber on top with a couple of 5-6 ft telephone poles on top of this. As soon as I got home I could smell,feel and taste the toxic junk and smoke in my house and the air outside. I went over and sure enough they were burning. I called the health dept and they said call the county sheriff and they eventually called the fire dept to put it out. Since they have been periodically burning for the past 8-10 years I also have developed COPD and have to take 4 inhalers several times a day. What can I do to stop this from affecting my health and property. I know that those toxins in the ash and smoke don't go away and contaminate the property and ground. My local health dept is just about as useful as a brick. They went so far as to tell one ex board member that they wouldn't respond if I called them.
You can sue them for nuisance, and request an injunction enjoining them from burning hazardous materials. You'll probably need a lawyer for that.
 
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