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Explora: Environment
and Resource Leaf burning air pollution

3.2. Leaf burning significantly increases both town in Iowa, the U.S. Americans with Disability Act has
outdoor PM levels and rates of asthma and other been successfully used to ban leaf burning to protect the
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respiratory disorders health of a severely asthmatic girl. 39
Several studies have reported that leaf/brush/grass burning Poison ivy (Toxicodendron radicans) is a common weed
can produce high levels of PM and other air pollutants through much of Canada, the U.S., and Mexico. Burning
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and are associated with significantly higher levels of poison ivy is especially dangerous since large quantities of
adverse health effects. the toxic antigen urushiol are released in the smoke, which
A 1977 study in Des Moines, Iowa, reported that during has been reported to cause fatal anaphylactic reactions in
leaf burning periods in October and November, total previously healthy people. 40
particulate level frequently exceeded 150 µg/m with about Leaf/brush/grass burnings are also significant fire risks that
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52% of the total particulate mass being smaller than 2 µm can severely injure humans, set forest fires, and burn buildings. 41-43
and therefore easily inhalable. Several factors make leaf A 5-year single hospital study in Memphis, Tennessee, reported
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burning pollution especially apt to cause adverse human that 136 patients (average 27.2/year) were admitted with leaf/
health effects including: (i) leaf burning occurs at about brush/trash burning-related injuries. Nine of the patients
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ground level; (ii) leaf burning often occurs in densely (7%) died and another 34 (25%) suffered injuries causing major
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populated urban and suburban areas; and (iii) fall leaf permanent impairment. Among these patients, 82% had access
burning often occurs during temperature inversions, which to free or inexpensive municipal yard/domestic waste pickup
prevent the pollution from dispersing in the atmosphere. 1 services. East Moline fire chief John Long in 1994 reported that
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A small PM study was conducted on two homes in leaf burning caused about three structural fires each year in the
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Owosso, Michigan (population of 14017) during leaf Town of East Moline, Illinois (population of 20,000). In 2017,
burning periods in November 2011. The members of these it was estimated that 84% of all wildfires in the U.S. were caused
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by human, with the majority of these fires attributed to cooking,
two homes were not involved in leaf or wood burning, and heating, or the disposal of leaves and brush. 44
the houses were located in areas “not immediately proximal
or downwind of visibly identifiable PM sources such 3.3. Health dangers due to wildfires
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as outdoor wood boilers, burn pits, or burning leaves.”
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Total outdoor PM levels were generally between 20 and The rates and intensities of wildfires have been increasing
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60 µg/m during leaf burning periods; however, there were significantly worldwide over the past 20 years and have
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numerous 1-min PM peaks between 80 and 180 µg/m . been associated with many high pollution events such as
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the Canadian wildfires causing very high PM levels in
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Several studies have reported that exposure to outdoor New York State and New York City on June 07, 2023. 45-48
leaf/brush burning is associated with significantly higher
respiratory morbidity and mortality. 35-38 A well-controlled Since the toxic chemicals produced by leaf/brush
spirometric study on seven asthmatic individuals aged burning are somewhat similar to those produced by
8 – 64 years on their usual asthma medication and three wildfire, and since there are many recent studies on the
controls was conducted in Wisconsin. When exposed pollution produced by wildfire and the associated adverse
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to leaf burning smoke during walking, five out of the health effects, in the opinion of the author, a concise review
seven asthmatic individuals experienced severe asthma of the health effects of wood wildfire burning will be useful
symptoms and significant drops in lung capacity as seen by when considering the adverse health effects of leaf burning.
FEV (peak flow of forced expiratory volume at 1 s). No Research has shown or suggested that wildfire smoke
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drops in FEV were seen in the seven asthmatics or control can cause adverse health effects through at least five
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subjects when walking in periods with no leaf burning. 35 different mechanisms: 49,50
Shim and Williams reported that leaf burning (i) Small particulates penetrating the alveolar barrier and
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significantly worsened asthma in 36 of 60 asthmatic entering the bloodstream;
patients (60%). Nolte and Gabel reported respiratory (ii) Compromise of epithelium in lung and other
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medical visits were about 3.1 times as high as the year- respiratory tissue;
round average during leaf burning periods in Cedar (iii) Increased oxidation;
Rapids, Iowa. Suri reported that Texas county-level (iv) Increased inflammation;
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drought-related burning bans (involving bans of burning (v) Increased risk of infection.
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wood, brush, leaves and grass) were associated with Wilgus and Merchant contributed a good review on
statistically significant (P < 0.05) reductions in annual the physiological and biochemical mechanisms through
respiratory death rates of about 7 people/100,000. In one which wildfire smoke emissions lead to health problems.
Volume 1 Issue 1 (2024) 4 doi: 10.36922/eer.4040