Originally published November 12 2015
The criminalization of self-reliance: Heating your home with wood is now illegal in more places
by J. D. Heyes
(NaturalNews) As more Americans look for (and succeed in finding) ways to "get off the grid" or live free from the confines of an all-powerful, multi-level (local, state, federal) government apparatus, that government apparatus simply becomes more authoritarian.
The latest effort to control the population is aimed at anyone who dares to utilize wood as a means of providing warmth and comfort. As the weather begins to turn cold across much of the United States, this effort is becoming a much more pressing issue.
As reported by Off the Grid News, beginning in the fall of 2016, it will become illegal to install wood-burning heaters and stoves in new homes in at least one major American city: San Francisco, where left-wing authoritarians go to thrive.
In fact, even wood stoves that have been certified by the persnickety Environmental Protection Agency, which never saw a wisp of smoke it liked, as low emission won't be allowed in new San Francisco homes.
"We are serious about reducing the health risks associated with our residents' exposure to wood smoke," Kristine Roselius, a spokeswoman for the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, told the Contra Costa County Times. "We are strengthening a rule that has been successful in protecting public health."
Nanny wants to rule in San Fran
Of course, there was no evidence offered to substantiate her claim, but when it comes to environmental extremism, scientific facts are optional.
Liberal progressives routinely engage in groupthink so they can substantiate their preconceived notions of the way things are (or ought to be), so all 22 members of the district's Board of Directors (none of whom, we're betting, heat their homes with wood or were planning to) voted to amend existing regulations to ban the new installation of wood-burning heaters and stoves beginning November 1, 2016.
The district consists of the nine counties that surround San Francisco Bay including San Francisco County, Alameda County (Oakland), Contra Costa County, Napa County, Santa Clara County (San Jose), San Mateo County, Southwestern Solano County and Southern Sonoma County, Off the Grid News reported.
As for those homes with existing wood-burning heaters, those will still be "allowed" but the nannies on the board of directors (which appear to be all of them) are going to require sellers to give buyers a form (which the sellers will have to provide at their expense) explaining the "health risks" of burning smoke (you know, because they're not smart enough to figure that out on their own).
Traditional fireplaces were already banned in the region, the Contra Costa Times reported.
"I think this is an overreaction"
Off the Grid News further noted:
The board also voted to end all automatic exemptions to its existing wood-burning ban, including one that exempts people who live in areas with no natural gas lines. Currently, such residents are exempt on high-pollution days. People living in areas with no natural gas will have to file for an exemption.
Not surprisingly, some board members wanted to take the new rules even further. A measure introduced earlier this year would have required homeowners to actually get rid of older fireplaces and wood stoves before place a home on the market, but a majority of board members retained enough sanity to reject that motion.
John Crouch, a spokesman for the Hearth, Patio and Barbecue Association, criticized the new rule.
"I think this is an overreaction," Crouch told the Contra Costa Times. "I don't think other pollution boards will take this approach."
What is occurring in San Francisco is part of a growing extremist environmental movement across the United States and Canada, which is one of the coldest countries on the planet) Many want to ban the burning of wood outright, despite the fact that wood smoke is not produced in an amount that can be directly tied to chronic disease and despite the fact that it is a very affordable energy alternative for millions of people.
Sources include:
OffTheGridNews.com
ContraCostaTimes.com
NaturalNews.com
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