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Forest Service asked to study pollution from wildfire
Saturday, April 23, 2005 | 1 comment(s)
WASHINGTON (AP) - Two Northwest senators have asked the Forest Service to do more research to measure air pollution caused by wildfires.
Currently, federal agencies track industrial emissions, but not those related to wildfire, Republican Sens. Gordon Smith of Oregon and Larry Craig of Idaho said in a letter to Forest Service Chief Dale Bosworth.
New research shows that forest fires are a major and increasing source of dioxins, "greenhouse" gases and other harmful fumes, Smith and Craig wrote.
For example, the 2002 Biscuit fire in southern Oregon may have released as much as 40 million tons of carbon dioxide - the equivalent of burning 3 billion gallons of gasoline or 10 percent of annual emissions from all coal-fired power plants in the United States, the senators said.
"A marked effort by the Forest Service to communicate estimated emissions from this year's forest fires would further the public's understanding of the trade-offs between active fuels management, prescribed fire and intense wildfires," they wrote.
Heidi Valetkevitch, a spokeswoman for the Forest Service, said the agency has long recognized the problem and "plans to look into the matter in more depth and respond to the senators promptly."
Currently, federal agencies track industrial emissions, but not those related to wildfire, Republican Sens. Gordon Smith of Oregon and Larry Craig of Idaho said in a letter to Forest Service Chief Dale Bosworth.
New research shows that forest fires are a major and increasing source of dioxins, "greenhouse" gases and other harmful fumes, Smith and Craig wrote.
For example, the 2002 Biscuit fire in southern Oregon may have released as much as 40 million tons of carbon dioxide - the equivalent of burning 3 billion gallons of gasoline or 10 percent of annual emissions from all coal-fired power plants in the United States, the senators said.
"A marked effort by the Forest Service to communicate estimated emissions from this year's forest fires would further the public's understanding of the trade-offs between active fuels management, prescribed fire and intense wildfires," they wrote.
Heidi Valetkevitch, a spokeswoman for the Forest Service, said the agency has long recognized the problem and "plans to look into the matter in more depth and respond to the senators promptly."
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