Ban on wood-fired boilers backed ,Friday, September 22, 2006
By PETER GOONAN
[email protected]
CHICOPEE - The Board of Aldermen voted unanimously last night to ask the Board of Health to ban outdoor wood fired boilers in response to recent complaints by some residents about smoke and pollution.
During a meeting at the City Hall Annex, Alderman-at-Large James K. Tillotson asked for two votes - one supporting the ban proposed by the Ordinance Committee and the other referring the matter for action by the Board of Health. Both were aoorived 12-0.
Tillotson said he conferred with the aldermen’s legal counsel, Daniel Garvey, about the best way to implement the ban, and they agreed it should go through the Board of Health.
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“I think the Health Department has much clearer authority when it comes to health issues,” Tillotson said.
Board of Health Chairman Frank Boron, reached for comment after the meeting, said his board will ask the Law Department to draft the proposed ban, and will then hold public hearings before making a decision.
In the meantime, the Board of Health voted this week to extend its temporary moratorium on outdoor boilers until June 2007.
Aldermen said last night that it was clear from testimony, both last night and at a prior meeting of the Ordinance Committee, that outdoor boilers create a concern about public health and pose a nuisance to neighbors. The proposed ban is aimed at both new and existing boilers.
City officials know of four outdoor boilers in Chicopee. Two owners have defended their boilers, including one homeowner who received a building permit in advance and spent more than $10,000 for the boiler.
Several neighbors and nearby residents said the boilers are a health hazard due to the wood smoke that is emitted. They praised the aldermen for taking up the issue.
Joseph T. and Arelia G. Tumidajewicz of 340 Pendleton Drive, who live next to a house heated by an outdoor wood boiler, said they were very pleased by last night’s vote.
“I think a lot of communities will follow Chicopee’s lead,” Arelia Tumidajewicz said.
Others speaking in favor of the ban last night included Janet Sinclair of Buckland, and Curt Freedman, P.E., a professor at Western New England College, who teaches energy management.
In other action, aldermen gave a first reading to an ordinance to allow no more than 59 billboard “faces” in the city. Currently, the ordinance allows no more than 31 billboards, but confusion emerged because of different ways of counting signs, depending on whether the faces of the billboards are connected, partially connected or separate.
The proposal for 59 billboard faces allows for the 50 current sign faces in the city, signs under consideration, and some leeway for one or two signs previously proposed, Tillotson said.
By PETER GOONAN
[email protected]
CHICOPEE - The Board of Aldermen voted unanimously last night to ask the Board of Health to ban outdoor wood fired boilers in response to recent complaints by some residents about smoke and pollution.
During a meeting at the City Hall Annex, Alderman-at-Large James K. Tillotson asked for two votes - one supporting the ban proposed by the Ordinance Committee and the other referring the matter for action by the Board of Health. Both were aoorived 12-0.
Tillotson said he conferred with the aldermen’s legal counsel, Daniel Garvey, about the best way to implement the ban, and they agreed it should go through the Board of Health.
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“I think the Health Department has much clearer authority when it comes to health issues,” Tillotson said.
Board of Health Chairman Frank Boron, reached for comment after the meeting, said his board will ask the Law Department to draft the proposed ban, and will then hold public hearings before making a decision.
In the meantime, the Board of Health voted this week to extend its temporary moratorium on outdoor boilers until June 2007.
Aldermen said last night that it was clear from testimony, both last night and at a prior meeting of the Ordinance Committee, that outdoor boilers create a concern about public health and pose a nuisance to neighbors. The proposed ban is aimed at both new and existing boilers.
City officials know of four outdoor boilers in Chicopee. Two owners have defended their boilers, including one homeowner who received a building permit in advance and spent more than $10,000 for the boiler.
Several neighbors and nearby residents said the boilers are a health hazard due to the wood smoke that is emitted. They praised the aldermen for taking up the issue.
Joseph T. and Arelia G. Tumidajewicz of 340 Pendleton Drive, who live next to a house heated by an outdoor wood boiler, said they were very pleased by last night’s vote.
“I think a lot of communities will follow Chicopee’s lead,” Arelia Tumidajewicz said.
Others speaking in favor of the ban last night included Janet Sinclair of Buckland, and Curt Freedman, P.E., a professor at Western New England College, who teaches energy management.
In other action, aldermen gave a first reading to an ordinance to allow no more than 59 billboard “faces” in the city. Currently, the ordinance allows no more than 31 billboards, but confusion emerged because of different ways of counting signs, depending on whether the faces of the billboards are connected, partially connected or separate.
The proposal for 59 billboard faces allows for the 50 current sign faces in the city, signs under consideration, and some leeway for one or two signs previously proposed, Tillotson said.
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) concerning these (or any) type of stove.
