Despair in Queensland

I am an elderly person who has suffered from wretched chimney smoke for over 10 years now.

The last place I lived, which was Kurri Kurri in New South Wales, became smoky after 4 years of living there. The neighbour there started lighting fires in his home and the smoke was horrific. I lived close to him. I had to end up selling and move.

So I moved to a small town in Queensland because I heard there was no smoke here, but there is. Now another move hopefully will happen, but my health is poor. I already have 4 different chest complaints… Any kind of smoke makes these problems far worse.

A lady at the local shop the other day told me everyone in this town lights fires, when I complained to her about the smoke coming inside my house. She said they have done it for hundreds of years and will continue with it.

Wood heaters, barbecues, outdoor fires, fire pits, and rubbish being burnt needs to be banned everywhere and not just in urban areas, because smoke travels a long way when the wind is up. Wood smoke shortens lives. It is destructive to the poor wildlife as well, such as birds and other animals that live outdoors.

I find the smoke is far worse when the wind is strong and when it’s cloudy overhead. It doesn’t matter if all doors and windows are shut, smoke still finds a way to get inside the home.

Laws need to be changed, and fast—not in the year 2045. A lot of older people won’t be around by then. Laws need to change now with wood heaters, and they need to be banned. I wish groups would form and march out on the streets about this shocking problem. Why should people have to put up with rotten dirty filthy smoke coming inside their homes all night long and part of the morning?

When smoke comes in here when it’s bad, it makes my chest burn and I end up in agony.

Smoke ruins people’s lives and changes their personality. Life isn’t worth living while having to put up with smoke seeping inside the home… It’s like living in some kind of hell.

It seems to live in a clean area now you have to be rich and move to new areas where new houses have no chimneys. That is not fair. A lot of people can’t afford to live in such areas where houses have no chimneys. Wouldn’t it be fair if they had cheaper areas where some houses didn’t have chimneys? Specific cheaper areas for people who can’t stand smoke. That’s just another idea.