Commentary:

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People probably  wonder why this is a concern--for having performed services for a local  Oncologist since 1998, I have seen the patients get younger and younger

We currently have  whole hospitals dedicated just to children with cancer

Wood smoke can be  up to 12 times more carcinogenic than cigarette smoke

Burning of leaves  can be up to 33 times more carcinogenic than cigarette smoke

It amazes me just  how ignorant the population really is when it comes to open burning, 

and how the people  that are supposed to protect you and the environment do not

Why do you think  there is an abundance of childhood diseases?

You cannot  continue to pollute this planet and expect to live on it, there are some simple  things we all can do
Open burning is alive and well in Pennsylvania
I for one cannot understand how something so detrimental to human health can  still be legal and/or acceptable?
After all you cannot smoke a cigarette in a mall, but I can push wood smoke  through your house, which is up to 12 times more carcinogenic, 

and call it a  ceremonial fire....
Now according to this: PA Code 129.14 Open Burning Operations
 http://www.pacode.com/secure/data/025/chapter129/s129.14.html

Your smoke cannot  pass from your property, personally I have never seen a single instance of open  burning that does not pass to a neighbors property
So what people are saying is that the sticks and leaves on their yard are more  important than their health, or they do not know how to recycle, so they burn.
Most people I have spoken with do not have a clue to the fact that wood smoke  causes cancer, as a matter of fact I have had a neighbor tell me that
"wood smoke does not cause cancer because people burn it in their homes"
So I can only conclude two things from this
Residents feel it is OK to open burn because the Township provides a permit
Or the resident is just ignorant to the statistics and/or does not care about anyone's health  including their own.
Have you ever seen pictures of China? 

China is so  polluted that people wear masks even out in the countryside
 https://www.google.com/search?q=china+air+pollution&biw=1280&bih=850&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&sqi=2&ved=0ahUKEwiGpLvNm7bSAhUBZSYKHeGjAewQ_AUIBygC

I no longer wonder  why our country is so dysfunctional, something so easy and logical cannot even  be resolved
Would it be OK to dump all of these chemicals in your water?
 http://burningissues.org/car-www/pdfs/tablewoodsmokeweightnov02%20.pdf

NO, then why are  they in our air????

There is more to  dirty air than lung cancer

https://www.google.com/#q=air+pollution+and+alzheimer%27s&*

 Get involved, talk to your neighbors, go to Township meetings, donate to one of  the organizations 

call you local Township and request a ban on  open burning, 

Here is a list of  Townships and their current status on open burning

 Townships.xlsx 

Call you local State Representative and request a ban on open burning 

Here is a  link to all PA representatives

http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/legis/home/findyourlegislator/