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Health & Fitness

Burn Baby Burn: Greener, Cleaner Fire Logs Recycle Waxed Cardboard

Just as we got used to the recent Spring weather, we are facing a few more days of freezing temperatures. One of this season’s great traditions is sitting around a warm, roaring fire. It has been part of the human experience since prehistoric times, when fire was regarded as a mysterious source of heat, light and security, especially during the cold, dark winter months. While less mysterious today, it is still important in our lives, we cook with it, heat with it and relax in front of it. And while it evokes wonderful imagery, it’s not always the best thing for the environment or our health. Burning firewood uses valuable resources, and it has consequences for the environment as well. Many state environmental agencies warn against burning wood, as it contributes to air pollution and its smoke contains toxins including carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxide (a source of smog), soot, and other harmful chemicals and gases — all of which can cause or worsen health problems.

All that said, it doesn’t mean that you need to shut the damper on your fireplace or put the damper on fires all together, and abandon this seasonal tradition. A pair of companies have created cleaner-burning, manufactured fire logs that help keep the air clear and are made of hard-to-recycle waxed boxes — the kind used to deliver fruits and vegetables to your grocery store.

Everyday more than 1.5 million of these wax corrugated cardboard containers are produced in the US. That adds up to more than 600,000 tons of waste every year, and it takes each box more than 50 years to decompose. These containers are used to protect and preserve perishable food items during shipping. Wax is used either as a coating on the inside or outside surface of the container or it is impregnated into the ruffled, fluted layer of the container. Because of the nature of this application, the wax must be food-grade according to US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) standards.

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Based in Fitzgerald, Georgia, Enviro-Log makes a long-lasting, clean-burning, economically priced firelog made of 100 percent recycled waxed corrugated cardboard. According to the company, they generate more energy per pound than wood or other firelog brands. They also burn 60-70 percent cleaner than wood, and can be used for cooking, heating, and recreational purposes. The company describes it as providing an “earth friendly fire”.

The CleanFlame company makes a similar firelog also made of recycled, old waxed cardboard. The wax used in these cardboard containers is high-quality food-grade, which allows them to burn hotter and cleaner than either natural wood or manufactured fire logs. That makes the flame clean enough to cook over, and it also burns safely in wood stoves or even in combination with natural wood.  According to CleanFlame, one log has the burning capacity of about three bundles of firewood.

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Both of these manufacturers are serving a dual purpose. Not only are they giving people a cleaner way to enjoy a fire, but they are keeping a waste material out of the landfill.

Boyd Leake is a Buckhead native and the founder and owner of Community Environmental. Since 1995 he has been an environmental and sustainability consultant with an emphasis on recycling, composting and “green” solid waste management.

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