Soot Hearings: Speaking Out for Public Health

On Tuesday, hundreds of Philadelphia residents rallied and spoke at an Environmental Protection Agency hearing on new safeguards to cut deadly soot pollution nationwide. On Thursday, many others rallied at a second soot hearing in Sacramento.

I grew up in the Smoky Mountains, where -- believe it or not -- dangerous levels of air pollution sometimes made it dangerous to hike in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Since becoming a mom two years ago, I know that I pay more attention to those "code red" and "code orange" days when the air pollution makes it dangerous for many kids to play outside. Well, soot is one of the main pollutants that triggers those air pollution alerts. Soot is an air pollutant caused by burning fossil fuels like coal, and it's known to cause respiratory illness, heart attacks and even premature death, according to the American Lung Association.

Here is what Jackie Wilson (pictured below with a sign showing that Philadelphia ranks 10th worst in the nation for deadly soot pollution), a volunteer with the Philadelphia Sierra Club, had to say at Tuesday's hearing: "On hot, humid days like today we are especially at risk from air pollution like soot, which poses a serious threat to our children and people with asthma like my young nephew. I've watched him deal with the challenges of not being able to breathe well first-hand. We're here today to show our support for stronger limits on soot pollution that will clean up our air and mean healthier families in Philadelphia."

Children and the elderly are most at risk from dangerous soot pollution, which can cause premature death, and is linked to a long, scary list of health problems including heart disease, lung disease, heart attacks, irregular heartbeats, asthma, chronic bronchitis, decreased lung function, irritation of the airways, coughing, and difficulty breathing. Soot pollution is estimated to cause 9,700 hospitalizations and more than 20,000 heart attacks each year.

At Tuesday's hearing, supporters of the new, stronger Environmental Protection Agency soot limits held a rally with a mom's stroller brigade that marched from the hearing to Independence Mall to show support from moms and parents who are worried about their children's health.

We were proud to be part of broad coalitions in Philadelphia and Sacramento that came together for these public hearings.

At yesterday's hearing in California, many families, children, doctors, and others testified. One mother spoke about losing her daughter to an asthma attack. "Nothing prepares you for the death of your child," she said. "Clean air is a matter of life and death."

Rocio Martinez, a local health advocate whose two kids have asthma, also spoke. "It's difficult to see these families with respiratory problems."

We will continue speaking up for the Environmental Protection Agency's public health safeguards.We urge you to send in your supportive comment today!

Photos by Kim Teplitzky -- see more on Flickr.

 

Follow Mary Anne Hitt on Twitter: www.twitter.com/maryannehitt

Comments

[ThinkCreeps]

11:23 AM on 07/21/2012

Particulate emission requirements are being tightened. The key question must be whether catalysts will be required for big diesel engines at some point - as they should be - whether ships in port are going to be required to be supplied with grid power, and whether grandfathering will remain for power plants, or whether they need to fix their emissions. In particular this final one would encourage the shuttering of old low-efficiency plants.

[Moose Luck 99]

08:42 PM on 07/20/2012

KINGSFORD CHARCOAL MADE FROM ANTHRACITE COAL!

what is kingsford charcoal made of - Ask Community
www.ask.com/answers/59931441/​what-is-kingsford-charcoal-made-of

Kingsford charcoal is made of charred softwoods, spruce, wood charcoal, anthracite coal, mineral charcoal, starch, limestone, sawdust, sodium nitrate and borax

Is it safe to use Anthracite coal to BBQ? Can the …

answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=...

Published Jul 04, 2007

Jul 11, 2007 · NO! not safe to cook over fossil fuel coal, anthracite or bituminous...best bet is hardwood charcoal or real wood

[Susan K Goldsborough]

12:05 PM on 07/20/2012

Once again, no mention of residential wood burning which is the largest source of soot in California's Bay Area and many, many other regions of the U.S. which use OWBs, fireplaces, and wood stoves to heat their homes. We can only hope that the Sierra Club comes to acknowledge this serious threat to public health.
Susan Goldsborough
http://familiesforcleanair.org

[FormerReaganite]

12:31 AM on 07/21/2012

Don't count on it, Susan.

The Sierra Club turns a blind eye to wood smoke pollution. Wood burning is a Sacred Cow to them.

[ThinkCreeps]

11:19 AM on 07/21/2012

This is still nonsense. A very very modest problem, that's detectable only owing to extremely clean air otherwise. What actually is your point? What's hiding behind that ridiculous website?

It's hard to imagine the level of single-issue obsession that can overlook the particulate emissions from heavy diesel engines in highway trucks to worry about little stoves. Woodsmoke is really not a big deal.

[FormerReaganite]

10:49 PM on 07/21/2012

Maybe not for YOU. Obviously you do not live in a plume of wood smoke. It's easy to discount the toxic effect when you are not exposed to it day after day.

And only those living right next to shipyards or freeways need worry about diesel. Coal power plant effluent is released hundreds of feet into sky. You will not even be aware if it.

Wood smoke, however, is released from 20-foot tall chimneys, only a few feet away from my home.