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Open Burning and Environmental Alternatives

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Leaf and Brush Burning

The burning of leaves and brush, other vegetation, as well as backyard trash burning, results in smoke. Smoke is caused by incomplete combustion. Smoke contains a number of hazardous air pollutants. Some of the components of smoke can cause cancer as well as other adverse health effects. Residential burning is generally regulated by local ordinances. What can you do? This page provides information on alternatives to residential leaf, brush and trash burning. You can increase you knowledge about the adverse impacts of smoke. You can educate others. The EPA can only regulate incomplete combustion emissions for major sources of air pollution such as automobiles and from larger stationary sources.

Public Service Video Clips

NOTE: To view these video clips, download the free QuickTime Player. Select and run the video most appropriate for your system

These video clips are public domain and with appropriate credit can be freely used and distributed.

Fall Flashback" U.S. EPA Leaf Burning Alternative1993

Name: Run Video 33.6k Connection required: 28.8k/33.6k Modem Quality: 7 QuickTime version required: 3 Name: Run Video 56k Connection required: 56k Modem/ISDN Quality: 8 QuickTime version required: 3 Name: Run Video ISDN Connection required: 112K Dual ISDN Quality: 9 QuickTime version required: 3

Mother and Daughter" U.S. EPA Leaf Burning Alternative 1993

Name: Run Video 33.6k Connection required: 28.8k/33.6k Modem Quality: 7 QuickTime version required: 3< Name: Run Video 56k Connection required: 56k Modem/ISDN Quality: 8 QuickTime version required: 3 Name: Run Video ISDN Connection required: 112K Dual ISDN Quality: 9 QuickTime version required: 3

Magician" U.S. EPA Leaf Burning Alternative 1993

Name: Run Video 33.6k Connection required: 28.8k/33.6k Modem Quality: 7 QuickTime version required: 3 Name: Run Video 56k Connection required: 56k Modem/ISDN Quality: 8 QuickTime version required: 3 Name: Run Video ISDN Connection required: 112K Dual ISDN Quality: 9 QuickTime version required: 3

Selected Documents-Emissions from Open Burning

October 2005 Technical Paper Prescribed Burns and Wildfires in Colorado: Impacts of Mitigation Measures on Indoor Air Particulate Matter. David E. Henderson, Jana B. Milford and Shelly L. Miller. Journal of the Air & Waste Management Association (JA&WMA), Vol. 55, No. 10, pp 1516-1526.
November 1997 EPA-600/r-97-134a Evaluation of Emissions from the Open Burning of Household Waste in Barrels-Volume 1. Technical Report (CTC)
November 1997 EPA-600/r-97-134b Evaluation of Emissions from the Open Burning of Household Waste in Barrels-Volume 2. Appendices A-G (CTC)
March 1998 EPA/600/SR-97/134 Evaluation of Emissions from the Open Burning of Household Waste in Barrels
January 1997 EPA/600/SR-96/128 Evaluation of Emissions from the Open Burning of Land-Clearing Debris
October 1996 EPA-600/R-96-128 Evaluation of Emissions from the Open Burning of Land-Clearing Debris (CTC)
1998 EPA/600/SR-98/013 Products of Incomplete Combustion from Direct Burning of Pentachlorophenol-treated Wood Wastes
February 1998 EPA/600/SR-98/017 Emissions from Outdoor Wood-Burning Residential Hot Water Furnaces
December, 1993 A Summary of the Emissions Characterization and Noncancer Respiratory Effects of Wood Smoke-EPA-453/R-93-036
July 1993 Analysis of Ambient Monitoring Data in the Vicinity of Open Tire Fires-EPA-453/R-93-029

Selected Documents-Alternatives to Open Burning

May 1991 EPA/530-SW-91-009 Environmental Fact Sheet: Yard Waste Composting  
May 1994 EPA530-R-94-003 Composting Yard Trimmings and Municipal Solid Waste
October 1992 EPA-452/F-92-007 Residential Leaf Burning: An Unhealthy Solution to Leaf Disposal

Other Wood and Vegetation Burning Resources

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