March 15, 1998
Community
3
Potential health hazards of backyard burn barrels
Most burn barrels operate at tem
peratures of 400-500F, which is
considerably lower than commercial
incinerators. The lower burning tem
perature is caused by poor oxygen
air flow in the barrels. Because the
burn barrels do not reach a high
enough temperature, the trash does
not completely burn. Burn barrels,
when compared to incinerators, pro
duce 310 times the amount of organic
gases, 12,000 times the amount car
bon monoxide, 30 times the amount
of carbon dioxide, and 40 times the
amount of particles that incinerators
produce for the same amount of gar
bage burned. The particles cause
health problems. Particles that are
larger in size can travel downwind
and land on the ground. A study re
vealed that this problem occurs with
about 50 of the particles.. This
amounts to a fallout of approximately
120 pounds of particles per ton of
burned refuse, which affects our
health and environment.
Products of incomplete combustion ,
present the greatest risk to particu
late contamination. Plastics that do
not completely burn contain amounts
of benzene and toluene, which are
suspected carcinogens. Unburned
ash contains heavy metals such as
Studies have shown that nearly
60,000 Americans die each
yearjrom Mhalatkm of soot.
chromium, lead and cadmium, which
can leach into the ground water and
contaminate it. This ash should not
be spread in gardens or in the yard.
Since half of the particles produced
in barrel burning are incredibly
small, they can easily pose problems
by traveling directly into homes, as
well as miles away. These particles
that develop from burn barrels can
cause diseases such as asthma, can
cer, lung disease, sudden elderly
heart attack and sudden infant death
syndrome.
Studies have shown that nearly
, 60,000 Americans die each year from
the inhalation of soot. Particles cling
to and scar lung tissue. This prob
lem is a large factor in children who
develop asthma. Children develop
these problems more quickly because
they have a higher breathing rate than
NATURAL RESOURCES
PUBLIC NOTICE
The Environmental Assessment (EA) and a Finding of No Sig
nificant Impact (FONSI) have been issued for the proposed
Three Creeks Logging Unit located in portions of the South
ern Vi of Section 17, Township 5 South, Range 8 West, Wil
lamette Meridian, Yamhill County, Oregon, on the Grand Ronde
Indian Reservation. The EA discloses two proposed Harvest
Alternatives, and one Deferred Harvest Alternative. The EA
further discloses potential impacts to the human and natural
environment that may occur as a result of the proposed Alter
natives. The FONSI discloses the Alternative selected by the
Responsible Official, and presents the rationale for the selec
tion. The Preferred Alternative, Alternative B, proposes a
clear-cut harvest of approximately 51.7 acres of Douglas-fir
and hardwood timber. The plan calls for a 16.8 acre riparian
buffer, and the construction of two temporary roads that will
be rehabilitated following harvest. Harvest under this Alter
native yields approximately 3.576 million board feet of conifer
timber, and 57.8 thousand board feet of hardwood timber.
The EA and FONSI are available for public review and com
ment for 15 days beginning the first day after publication of
this notice. The Responsible Official is Mr. Stan Speaks, Port
land Area Director for the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
Written comments and requests for copies of the EA and
FONSI should be addressed to: Peter M. Wakeland, Forester,
Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde, Natural Resources Di
vision, P.O. Box 10, Grand Ronde, Oregon 97347. Mr.
Wakeland may be reached by phone at: (503) 879-2378. Writ
ten comments must include: (1) Your name, address, and tele
phone number; (2) Title of the document on which you are com
menting; and (3) Specific facts or comments along with sup
porting reasons that you believe that the Responsible Official
should consider. Comments received will be given consider
ation before final action is taken.
adults. Pregnant mothers infect their
unborn child each time they breathe
in contaminated air, and this can al
ter the child's DNA in the early
months of pregnancy. Inhalation of
these particles has also been shown
to alter our immune systems.
Burn barrels produce highly visible
plumes of smoke. Due to the low al
titude of the burn barrels the smoke
does not have enough time to disperse
into the atmosphere. This can result
in high particulate concentrations
miles down wind from the bum sites.
Listed here are other healthy alter
natives to burning trash in backyard
barrels: '
Compost leaves, lawn clippings,
and garbage whenever possible.
Separate, recycle, and reuse plas
tics, papers, and metal cans. j
Dispose of garbage properly
through roadside pickups.
These alternatives are easy to fol
low and do not require much of an
adjustment. To make them effective
the entire community's participation
is necessary in order to provide for a
safe and healthy environment for ev
eryone. Reprinted from the March 1, 1998 issue
of the EPA REGION 10 TRIBAL NEWS
LETTER, which was originally printed in
the Iroquois Environmental Newsletter and
written by Rae Seymour and Tom Pogul.
Note from Kathleen Feehan,
Tribal Environmental Specialist:
As a reminder to residents in the
Grand Ronde area, there is a Com
munity Recycling Depot located be
hind the Public Works and Housing
Building at 25500 Grand Ronde
Road.
The Recycling Depot is open for
community use, and accepts glass
bottles, aluminum and tin cans, milk
jugs, magazines, newsprint, and cor
rugated cardboard. Please remem
ber to RINSE all bottles, cans, and
jugs. No lids or cover.
Anyone interested in additional in
formation about recycling or
composting is encouraged to call En
vironmental Resources at 879-2395.
l :i :,'!
Deputy enjoys Grand Ronde's
community spirit
By Tracy Dugan
Eric Shepherd has been a on patrol
in Grand Ronde for nearly a year.
He was assigned to the area by the
Polk County Sheriffs Department af
ter Jeff VanLaanen was promoted last
year. Deputy Shepherd works with
Tom O'Brien, who has been in Grand
Ronde for more than three years.
Deputy Shepherd was accepted at
the Reserve Academy in 1993, and
spent eight months in training there.
From there he went on Active Re
serve, which includes Marine Patrol
and working security.
"I patrolled the Willamette River,
and worked security at the Polk
County Fair and Grand Ronde Tribal
Pow-wow," he said.
Active Reserve also includes spend
ing time patrolling with a partner, who
is usually an older, more experienced
police officer.
In 1996, Deputy Shepherd spent
eight weeks at the Police Academy
in Dallas, Oregon, and after that
tested to work on patrol and at the
Polk County jail.
"I went to work on patrol," said
Deputy Shepherd. "I covered every
square mile of Polk County."
Now he has been assigned to cover
only Grand Ronde, and works from
the Grand Ronde substation near
Bunnsville. Besides patrol, the depu-
i
ties respond to calls in Grand Ronde,
provide building security checks, visit
local business and merchants, and at
tend community functions. Shepherd
is also a member of the Grand Ronde
Service Integration Team. He has
gotten to know many of the families,
workers, and residents of Grand
Ronde, which makes his job more
personal.
"I have gotten to know many of the
people I have helped," he said. "That
is the difference between working
here and a big city."
Shepherd said that in the city, offic
ers and deputies follow-up on calls they
handle, but often never know what the
final outcome of a situation is.
"Seeing the difference I can make.
That's the rewarding part of working
here."