Where There's Smoke, There's Ire!

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Where There's Smoke, There's Ire!

• Our Story

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OUR STORY

• In 2000, we bought a home in Amherstburg, Ontario
  to enjoy our retirement in. It was perfect for
  us! Everything on one floor, a surrounding deck,
  and a large expanse of lawn.
• Little did we know that, in 2002, our lives would
  be changed dramatically!

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• Beginning in 2002, our home became
  surrounded and infiltrated by wood smoke from our
  neighbour.
• There was no help in getting this smoke
  stopped. Everywhere we turned we received
  sympathy but were told there was nothing they
  could do.
• We were told that it was an issue to be
  dealt with at the municipal level.

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• Approaching the municipality and asking for help
  gave us more sympathy but no action. The people
  we talked with said it was a civil matter.
• We called the Building Inspector repeatedly about
  the height of the chimney and were told it met
  code.
• What do you think? Did it?

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• We spoke, both in person and by telephone,
  to the neighbours telling them that the smoke
  was getting into our house and making life almost
  unbearable . The response was to keep your
  windows closed. We tried to explain that the
  smoke gets in through the furnace intake, spaces
  under doors, etc.
• They then said they would not stop burning
  , would burn what they want and to sue them if we
  didnt like it which we finally ended up doing.

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• We obtained a temporary court injunction in
  May of 2005, in which it is stated that they
  cannot release smoke of any kind from their
  residence.
• Trial was booked for September 2008 but the
  defendants filed an appeal motion the week before
  trial was to commence. Trial is pending following
  their appeal hearing.
• They want to test their chimney by burning
  for 3 days! And, cover us in smoke again? Its as
  if they are blaming the chimney instead of
  themselves, even though they, too, couldnt have
  missed the smoke out-pouring.

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• Five pickup loads of wood were brought in
  and dumped in their driveway, post-injunction!
  Intimidation? I dont know but it only served to
  motivate me to help others in the same situation.
• The next photo shows a diverter added to the
  chimney that directed the smoke at our house.

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• We approached our local council and they decided
  that the chimney needed to be raised and thought
  that would solve the problem.
• The chimney was raised, but the problem continued
  as the burning increased and the smoke billowed
  out day and night.

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• There was no escaping the smoke and the stench.
  Many nights I would sleep with my head under the
  sheets hoping to escape the irritants of the
  smoke.
• I had burning eyes, a continual sore throat and
  nasal irritation that led to many sinus headaches
  and infections.

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• The brick chimney was originally an outdoor
  barbeque, that I never saw ever used.
• He added, what I like to call, a plastic
  room around it and attached it to the side of
  the house.
• The plastic room was made of materials, he
  told the press, that he obtained from a
  greenhouse that was being rebuilt.
• The roof, also, is made of some type of
  corrugated plastic.
• The plastic room remains to this day.

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• He then decided to add a wood stove instead
  and had it built in the far corner of the plastic
  room.
• This chimney pipe was too short and the
  council, once again, dealt with him and he raised
  it by about 5 feet. They had him replace the
  chimney cap, hoping it would deflect the smoke
  away. It didnt.
• Perhaps he was upset about this as he
  removed the cap the next day and burned up a
  storm.
• The cap was later put back on.

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• The next few slides show some of the
  materials that were stored in the yard in various
  places.
• Most were partially covered but some piles
  were just thrown together.
• These piles contained treated wood, plywood,
  red barn wood, plastics, and scraps.
• The smoke was nauseating and the colour of
  the smoke varied by what was being burned.
• I knew then that we would have to do
  something!

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• Our ordeal began in 2002 ..
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• I can tell you first-hand what it is like
  when one is forced to deal with a smoke issue, as
  I have lived through it.
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• I can tell you that the stench permeates
  your entire home, your clothing, your hair, and
  you can even taste it.
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• Exposure to the smoke was extremely
  uncomfortable and caused burning eyes, dry
  throat, irritation of the nasal passages and
  headaches. When the smoke stopped, so did the
  symptoms.
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• There was no relief by opening windows
  because the acrid smells were like a fog covering
  our house. Buying expensive air cleaners did
  nothing to remove the odours.
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• There was no enjoying the deck and yard as
  long as the wood burning stove was in operation.

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• As there was no provincial or municipal
  authority to whom we could turn to for help, we
  were forced to resort to the courts.
• In order to get the smell of the wood smoke
  out of the house, we removed and replaced the
  carpeting, ductwork, the furnace and air
  conditioning unit, and cleaned all surfaces
  including the walls. Mattresses and pillows were
  discarded as they smelled of wood smoke. It was
  an expensive project.

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• I can tell you the fatigue my husband felt
  after working all day and then going to our house
  until near midnight day after day to work on the
  renovations. Myself, I had all the clothing and
  every knick-knack and assorted other household
  objects to wash before bringing them back to the
  house.
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• I came to notice that there were absolutely
  no cobwebs in a house that had been vacated for
  so long. I can only assume that something in the
  smoke killed the spiders because, now that we
  have the Injunction and there is no burning, I
  again have cobwebs.

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• We were fortunate enough to have the means
  to seek legal help. Remember that there was no
  provincial or municipal authority which we could
  turn to for help.
• What would happen to those that cannot
  afford legal help? Would they be forced to move
  out of their homes? Could they afford to do that?
  Would they be able to sell their home when a
  potential buyer saw or smelled the smoke? Or,
  would they have to remain in their homes with
  their children and become sick? It's a thought
  that is very disturbing to me.

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• I think it is high time that our
  municipalities give some thought to banning all
  wood burning in residential areas.
• I fail to see how the public interest is
  served by permitting the unnecessary fouling of
  the air we all have the need to breathe.

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• To those of you that think this kind of thing
  could never happen to you, think again! It can
  happen almost overnight and not one family is
  guaranteed that they wont end up in the same
  position as we did.

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• Many municipalities have a no outdoor
  burning bylaw, yet the smoke from indoor burning
  is released into the air and permeates throughout
  neighbourhoods and gets into neighbours homes.
  There is no escaping it, inside or out. Where is
  the help for the victims?
• The victims of smoke are a majority. The
  burners are not. Why is it so difficult to ban
  wood burning in residential areas?

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• There is no smoking in public places now,
  yet the smoke from wood burning is far more
  dangerous and travels for miles, exposing
  everyone to its dangerous toxins. Does this make
  sense to anyone?
• Those municipalities that feel that a bylaw
  telling people what they can burn in their
  fireplaces and wood stoves is a good one are dead
  wrong. As you can see in my photos, you cannot
  control what people are burning in their homes.
• Shirley Brandie s.brandie_at_sympatico.ca
• Web site http//WoodBurnerSmoke.net

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