http://www.care2.com/greenliving/10-ways-to-have-an-eco-friendly-campfire.html
10 Ways to Have an Eco-Friendly Campfire
By Terri Hall-Jackson, Contributing Writer to Care2's Healthy and Green Living
Memorial Day Weekend is upon us, the beginning of summer and the start of camping season. And when you think of camping, what image comes to mind? Undoubtedly a campfire is somewhere in the mix. What a cozy, earthy and primal experience it is, smelling and being warmed by burning wood while outdoors. The simple pleasure of a campfire, however, can become a hazardous one for you and cause long-lasting damage to your campsite if some green camping sense isn’t applied.
Here are some campfire tips to keep you safe and minimize your impact on the Earth:
1. Follow the rules. Every state and national park or forest has fire restrictions. Be sure to contact the park ranger’s office to learn about any fire restrictions in place at the time you are camping. Many camps require that you get a campfire permit (often at no charge) to ensure you understand the restrictions and to help them track fires in the park.
2. Location, location, location! Choose a level, open location away from dry grass, bushes or overhanging branches. If one is not already there, build a fire ring out of stones to contain your fire. Pile soil around the edge of your circle. Also avoid starting campfires at the base of steep hills; fire travels uphill quickly. There should be a 10-foot circle around your fire area clear of anything that might easily ignite (your tent and supplies, pine needles, dry grass, etc.).
3. Respect the habitat. Take your time (a 15-minute walk) when gathering wood so as to spread your impact over a larger area. Use only dead and fallen branches that you can break manually (even for those marshmallow roasting sticks). Store all wood well away from the fire and upwind to avoid accidental ignition.
4. Build a campfire to the size you need. Unnecessarily big, roaring fires invite more hazards. Pack enough clothing for cool evenings in order to help stay warm without a giant fire.
5. Don’t burn plastic, metals or woods that have been treated with chemicals in order to avoid air pollution.
6. Never leave fire unattended, not even for a few minutes.
7. Do not leave children or pets near fire alone.
8. Keep a water- or sand-filled bucket nearby in case of emergency.
9. At least half an hour before leaving your campsite, make sure your fire is completely out. After the fire has died down, pour water over the ashes and then smother the ashes with dirt. Mix the ashes, water and dirt until all of the embers have died. Be sure to soak the ring of stones as well to make sure you get hidden embers.
10. Redistribute any unused wood to leave the area closer to how you found it.
More on Nature Activities (21 articles available)More from Terri Hall-Jackson (27 articles available)
related stories
-
Want to decorate your home with nature’s gifts to celebrate…
-
terrih
Here are dozens of great holiday ideas, compiled over years…
-
During the holiday season I like to take at least half a…
(1 comment)
Annie B.
Melissa
Jana
Kelly
Lily
Terri
Heather L.
Lynn
Carl
Betsy
Cait
Avery
The Gallands
Eric
Andrew
Dave
Deepak
4 comments
add your comment »The truth is that outdoor fires are not green at all, but are terrible polluters. Better to roast your marshmallows during the day with an outdoor homemade solar oven.
flag as inappropriate
why is this inappropriate?
The truth is that campfires are not eco-friendly at all, but are horrible polluters. Better to roast your marshmallows with a little homemade solar oven in the day.
flag as inappropriate
why is this inappropriate?
This is in response to Matthew's post above, regarding biofuels...
Matthew, I can tell you mean well, but please note that you - and no doubt thousands upon thousands of other enviro-conscious people - are completely wrong about biofuels... they sound like a great idea (and could be), but they are not.
There are 2 main problems:
1. the increase in demand for biofuels has prompted many formerly food-growing communities into clear-cutting forests (including rainforests) that ensure habitat protection, help prevent soil erosion, and absorb carbon. It is devastating to the local ecosystems.
2. simply that 'food' crops are increasingly being used as fuel. I am assuming it is going largely under-reported in the U.S., but there is a growing global food crisis happening right now, which is set to become much worse. So-called 'developing' nations are literally *starving to death* so that western consumers can maintain their supply of 'cheap fuel'.
Here are some very good, very recent articles/interviews:
Interview with Raj Patel, author of '‘Stuffed and Starved: The Hidden Battle for the World Food System":
http://uprisingradio.org/home/?p=2640
Union of Concerned Scientists' article "Land Use Changes and Biofuels": http://www.ucsusa.org/clean_vehicles/fuel_economy/land-use-and-biofuels.html
Haiti genocide
http://www.blackagendareport.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=520&Itemid=1
United Nations' Task Force:
http://www.thestar.com
flag as inappropriate
why is this inappropriate?
Terri, i totally hear you on how to make your campfire eco-friendly. these are some great tips- i definitely appreciated point 5. i think avoiding air pollution is key, seeing that we are in nature! don't want smokey the bear to give us a slap on the wrist (among other things).
this might seem unrelated, but i didn't know how to reach your otherwise. i currently work for NORA and right now, like you, we're really committed to cutting down carbon footprints. this blog post probably most effective during the summer months where families are going camping, but what about snow-covered winter times?
we're really trying to push use of Biofuels right now, you know, get the word out because i think a lot of people don't know about it. if everyone were to use it we'd be saying 400 million gallons of oil!
check it out here: http://oilheatamerica.com/index.mv?screen=bioheat
also, when your friends are over, it would give someone so much green cred to say they're using soybeans to keep toasty.
how cool is that!? would love to hear what you have to say about it Terri!
flag as inappropriate
why is this inappropriate?