Wood smoke causes breathing difficulties

I live in Caulfield South [Melbourne] and every year around April the air around my home begins to become polluted by wood smoke. It sits heavy in surrounding parks and streets and infiltrates into my home. This worsens my asthma causing breathing difficulties, and also triggers allergies.

I then suffer from smoke related sinus inflammation and eye irritation. It becomes difficult to walk outside and often I need to remain indoors with air filters on.

My quality of life declines as my right to breathe clean air is completely disregarded by people’s desire to have a fire burning in their home.

We know it’s not energy efficient, nor a safe way to heat a home—and we know it causes immeasurable harm to people and animals by polluting the air.

We need governments and health leaders to insist on phasing out wood burning heaters completely and take the health, social and environmental risks of smoke pollution seriously.