Have we died and gone to hell or are we still living in North St. Paul? You cannot tell the difference tonight!
It is a smoky evening of epic proportions. Not just a smoky evening, but an evening with smoke that stinks so badly I suspect that something else is being burned along with the wood.
2:30 AM: No wood smoke at this time but a very faint burnt wood smell is in the air. Other than the slight burnt wood smell the air is clear. Burnt wood odor in the morning usually means somebody had a bonfire.
7:00 AM: Fresh air!
Noon: No smoke of any kind yet.
3:15 PM: Faint grass smoke. Somebody is burning grass. Wood, grass, leaves, whatever people can get their hands on they burn in this nightmare of a town.
4:00 PM: Air is clear. Enjoy it while it lasts because it will not last long.
6:45 PM: Light to moderate wood smoke. I do not see anyone near us burning. I suspect it is the same person who was burning at this time last week. That pyromaniac burns at least five days a week in the summer. He's not the only one who burns. There are several. There are three or four wood burners on every block. That is why the air is smoky every evening in this town. 64 degrees. An otherwise nice spring evening is shot to hell because of wood smoke pollution.
7:30 PM: Moderate wood smoke. Smoky as hell outside! We have the worst city council ever. The wood smoke is intense and there is something in it that stings your nose. This is not normal wood smoke.
I suspect the burner is burning wood to hide the disposal of waste. I do not know who it is. I went out and looked at the usual suspect's property and could not see any smoke rising. Wood smoke permeates the entire area and there is not much of a breeze so I can not pinpoint it to one property.
8:30 PM: Light to moderate wood smoke. At least the toxic air pollution decreased in intensity.
9:00 PM: Moderate wood smoke. It is smoky as hell!
10:30 PM: Strong wood smoke. This smoke is so heavy you cannot stand it!
11:30 PM: Strong wood smoke continues. Last check of the evening.
The air was smoky at 3:45 AM and faintly smoky at 5:30 AM the next morning. That makes 11 hours of wood smoke this night.
Does North St. Paul, Minnesota, sound like a good place to live to you? You can thank city council members Jan Walczak and Bob Bruton for the smoky air. Both of them support wood burning and smoky air. Walczak and Bruton don't care about the elderly, the babies with developing lungs, or you.