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STOW, Mass. — Mulch may no longer be laid within 18 inches around buildings with combustible exteriors, such as wood or vinyl starting Saturday, according to State Fire Marshal Stephen D. Coan.
The regulation is in response to several Massachusetts fires that involved mulch-wood products, according to a fire marshal's office statement.
Residential buildings with fewer than six units are exempted from this regulation.
Mulch is a combustible material that can be easily ignited by improperly discarded smoking materials, according to the fire marshal's office, which added that hundreds of fires are started this way every year.
What starts as a small outside mulch fire can quickly spread to buildings and climb the exterior. The fire can get a good start before people are made aware by smoke alarms, sprinkler systems activating or someone notices, the statement said.
In April 2012, improperly discarded smoking materials ignited mulch outside an assisted living center in Braintree. The fire forced the early morning evacuation of many older adults, some of whom suffered smoke inhalation injuries, the statement said.
The new regulation also limits the size of mulch piles, requires a distance of 30 feet between piles and limits the distance from the lot line to 25 feet.
Permits are required from the fire department wherever more than 300 cubic yards of mulch is produced or stored.
The fire marshal's office is recommending that property managers and building owners take the following steps:
- Keep wood mulch 18 inches away from all building exteriors. Don't put it against the building.
- Use something like pea stone or crushed rock for the first 18 inches as a barrier around the foundation of the building.
- Provide proper receptacles for smoking materials.
Comments (9)
I don"t think the law goes far enough. The exemption for residential homes is a mistake. There is a history of house fires in town(and everywhere) due to careless disposal of smoking materials. Virtually every drive-up has experienced a mulch fire. Since we can't outlaw smoking, it's the least we can do. Yes, I believe its legislation that protects us from ourselves. But how long will it be before insurance companies deny coverage for careless disposal? At that piont, it will cost EVERYONE.
If the problem is careless smokers in cars, then perhaps insurance companies should raise the smokers' auto insurance rates to cover the additional risk for which they are responsible.
A lot of car accidents are caused by people driving drunk. Maybe we should mandate that businesses selling and serving alcohol not have any parking spaces. --Or--just demand that all homes and businesses along roads install guardrails to prevent drunk drivers from damaging their property.
There were also a lot of house fires in town caused by arson. Should businesses be slapped with silly regulations to prevent arson, too? Or-- perhaps the way to prevent future arson is by prosecuting past arsonists.
I don't mind someone suggesting that it's a good idea to move mulch away from a building. Then its up to me to decide if its necessary. Mandating it though? People will have to comply with this even in circumstances where there is no risk of careless cigarette disposal, because the decision has been taken out of their hands (and left up to someone who's never even seen their business).
Meanwhile, the careless smokers will not have to account for their careless behavior. Everyone else will have to adjust to them instead...
It's ignoring the real issue.
If fire depatments are this critical of the property owners, then I suggest that the property owner's should review the fire departments.
The savings from fire dept. personel reductions, far, far, far, far, far ... exceeds, the savings from moving mulch back 18".
Once again: Thank you Massachusetts for protecting us from ourselves. I don't know what we would do without you.
The state should take away all our propane grills, gas stoves, fireplaces, and electronics as those could also start a fire.
Will fire marshalls now need to take a course in landscaping?
Maybe the state should install tracking chips in all cigarettes so that the blame can be assessed to careless smokers.---Or maybe the state should require that all smokers be registered and carry "Smokers' Insurance"!
Regulation can't replace common sense. People need to just be responsible and stop acting like careless idiots!
... but that's just my opinion ;)
According to FEMA, an estimated 9,000 smoking-related fires in residential buildings occur each year in the United States, and, they are the leading cause of fire deaths. So how about making multi-family residential buildings smoke-free?
Um, maybe they should regulate cigarettes!
That is how the fire at the D. Light house on Howe Ave. in Millbury started, with a cigarette tossed in the mulch.
Here is a 2009 article written at the time:
http://m.millburysutton.com/news/2009-06-25/front_page/001.html
Oh no, my compost pile is within 25 feet of my lot line that boarders a street!
Snicker.