City needs a clean-air policy

By Letter to the Editor on February 25, 2021.

Editor:
A Lethbridge senior shared with me how the other day at home, they felt nauseous and dizzy, with wood smoke in the air. The heart warning light on their blood pressure monitor was lit up. Smoke was found to be thick, heavy and overpowering from an outdoor wood fire nearby.
We have bylaws prohibiting smoking near schoolyards and city-owned playground equipment. To be consistent and responsible, the city also needs to prevent and prohibit needless smoke pollution in neighbourhoods.
In residential zones of cities like Vancouver, the only fuels permitted for outdoor burning are non-wood-burning ones, which emit less CO2 than wood, and fewer harmful particulates.
As Vancouver’s bylaw states, open-air fires on either public or private property are NOT allowed if they are: \”Chimineas burning wood; Sky lantern (small hot air balloon made of paper with an opening at the bottom where a small fire is suspended); Fire pit burning wood; Burn barrel burning paper or wood.”
Why are residents of Lethbridge not protected in the same way?
Clearly, organizations like the Alberta Lung Association must start doing a much better job of informing the public, including decision-makers, about the harmful impacts of particulate matter and outdoor air pollution, which are both Group 1 carcinogens.
Air pollution worsens climate change while damaging health and quality of life in neighbourhoods. According to the World Health Organization, air pollution, from sources including wood fires, is responsible for an estimated 7 million premature deaths annually worldwide.
It’s time for a positive change. It’s time for our local government to adopt clean air policies that protect citizens both young and old – and to no longer leave them in harm’s way.
Cathy Baiton
Lethbridge