EPA Soot Regulations

[Ben]

I just saw this and am not sure what it means. Most of what I saw on it is pretty vague as to what it covers. I saw a Christian Science Monitor article that implied it covered everything from the oil and gas industry to wood burning stoves.

If so, I can't help but wonder if we will all soon be banned from having real wood fires in our fireplaces, or campfires when camping. There are already such rules in CA. My folks have an illegal (but up till now apparently grandfathered-in) Franklin stove in their home that I love to sit by every Christmas. Their area of CA already has "no wood burning stove use" days through the majority of the Winter (which are ignored, at least when I'm up there), and that includes the new-fangled wood stoves with catalytic converters, etc.

I can't help but think that if this passes we will soon face tickets and fines for having a fire in a backyard fire pit, or a campfire at our campsite. I'm waiting for REI to start selling "artificial campfires" that you plug into your solar panel when you're out in the woods.


http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/06/15/epa-proposes-stricter-standards-for-soot-pollution/?test=latestnews

[Tallpine]

Try that up here - you think they have enough people to enforce that in the outback ? 

Oh yeah, and they should ban forest fires, too - that would save a lot of effort and money 

[MechAg94]

Likely, there will be a minimum Btu limit on this regulation. 

However, particulate emissions are already reported to the state at least here in Texas.  It is typically not measured in most places, but just based on stardard fuel factors.  I would assume power plants measure it.  Even clean gases like natural gas have particulate emissions.  Of course, that only applies to permitted operations, not home fireplaces.

That said, I really hate seeing all the "studies" that supposedly show additional things are deadly.  I tend to be very very distrustful.

[RoadKingLarry]

Last year or the year before they wanted to regulate farm dust.

[Ben]

What I fear is that this will likely be enacted at the county level for reporting, and counties will enact things like wood burning bans , much as they do here in CA, in order to help bring their numbers down.

Big corporations will be able to pay penance via cap and trade.

[RoadKingLarry]

Around here a wood burning ban might result in active rebellion. There are still bunches of people that heat with wood.

[Tallpine]

Around here a wood burning ban might result in active rebellion. There are still bunches of people that heat with wood.

Heck, around here it would be the county commissioners and sheriffs actively rebelling! 

[drewtam]

Soot & PM, ash, white smoke are different things.

Soot & PM (particulate matter) is mostly carbon compound, black. Ranges from microscopic to large flakes. Good scientific studies find the microscopic stuff can get in lungs and cause cancer. Any kind of burning carbon can emit PM. Gasoline, diesel, coal, wood, propane, Nat gas, etc. Some are worse than others. Nat gas, propane and gasoline are typically low soot, but still produce some. Especially if oil gets in the combustion.

Soo & PM naturally oxidize and remove themselves from the atmosphere over time, with little long term damage. Modern diesels use very high injection pressures, controlled lean combustion, and Diesel Particulate Filters to clean up this emission. On road and off road diesel PM emissions have been controlled since the late 90's.

High soot & PM emission is characterized by rich black smoke. Hot flames with good air flow don't produce this kind of smoke.

Ash is the left over non-carbon material. It is already oxidized and is mostly inert.

White smoke is a cold flame/combustion with excess fuel to air. It is mostly unburnt hydrocarbons (HC). Usually noticeable with a wet fire, or a cold diesel start up.