NFPA Journal -March/April 2014 - (Page 4)
>> FIRST WORD
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
OFFICERS
Chief Philip C. Stittleburg, Chair
La Farge Fire Department
La Farge, Wisconsin
BY NFPA PRESIDENT JAMES M. SHANNON
Ernest J. Grant, First Vice-Chair
North Carolina Jaycee Burn Center
Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Randolph W. Tucker, Secretary
ccrd partners
Houston, Texas
Having It Both Ways
Finding a balance between fire safety and environmental concern
WHEN AN 11-ALARM FIRE broke out at
the Dietz & Watson distribution center
in Delanco, New Jersey, last September,
hundreds of firefighters from surrounding communities responded. But the
300,000-square-foot (27,871-square-meter)
facility was completely destroyed, in part
because the 7,000 photovoltaic panels on the
roof kept the firefighters from doing their job.
In media reports, the fire chief said he was
concerned that firefighters risked electrocution if he allowed them on the roof. "With all
that power and energy up there, I can't jeopardize a guy's life for that," he was quoted as
saying. A new section was added to the 2012
We do not have to choose between the
environment and fire safety. We have
an important stake in both.
edition of NFPA 1, Fire Code, to address these
operational concerns, but it's unclear to what
extent the provisions are being considered.
The chief's dilemma illustrates a tension
between fire safety and environmental concerns, and the issue of how we balance these
crucial societal interests will only grow. Last
year, for example, when California acted to
remove flame retardants from upholstered
furniture, the action was applauded by many
who pointed to concerns that the chemicals
in question might be harmful to health, particularly in children. The response from the
fire protection community was somewhat
muted, because even in that community
there is skepticism as to how much fire
protection is actually provided by applying these chemicals to furniture. There are
people who argue that the next logical step
should be wholesale removal of chemical
retardants from all building materials.
It is appropriate to raise these kinds
of environmental concerns, but it is also
important that any possible degradation
of fire safety be taken into account when
policymakers consider their options. Organizations like NFPA and its affiliated Fire
Protection Research Foundation (FPRF) have
an important role to play in this process
because we are not partisans. Our safety
mission is fulfilled when we find the technical solutions to problems. Several years ago
we led an effort to find alternatives to halon
when environmental concerns arose, and
strategies were developed to address both
environmental and fire protection concerns.
Electric vehicles (EVs) are another
example. When the federal government
decided to support EVs in a big way as part
of the 2009 stimulus package, we were concerned that emergency responders could be
endangered while responding to car crashes
involving EVs. We did not just point out
the dangers, and we did not discourage the
use of the technology-rather, we helped
provide a solution by offering training to
emergency responders on how to respond
safely to these incidents. With financial support from the Department of Energy and in
close collaboration with automobile manufacturers, we created the training programs
and have delivered them to thousands of
emergency responders.
The FPRF has also provided important
research on photovoltaics and lithium-ion
batteries, work aimed at discovering the
best technical solutions to advance the environmental improvements that society is
trying to achieve while maintaining appropriate fire safety standards.
We do not have to choose between the
environment and fire safety. We have an
important stake in both. NFPA must continue to work collaboratively with both the
fire protection and environmental communities to help advance new technological
solutions to these problems.
H. Wayne Boyd, Treasurer
U.S. Safety & Engineering Corporation
Sacramento, California
Keith E. Williams, Assistant
Treasurer
Underwriters Laboratories Inc.
Northbrook, Illinois
James M. Shannon, President
President and CEO, NFPA
*Bruce H. Mullen, Staff Officer
Executive Vice-President and CFO,
NFPA
*Dennis J. Berry, Assistant Secretary
Secretary of the Corporation, Director
of Licensing, NFPA
dIRECtORS
Thomas W. Jaeger, Past Chair
Jaeger and Associates, LLC
Great Falls, Virginia
Terms Expire in 2014
Amy Acton
The Phoenix Society
Grand Rapids, Michigan
James M. Clark
Management Consultant
Germantown, Tennessee
Kwame Cooper
Los Angeles Fire Department
Los Angeles, California
Julie A. Rochman
IBHS
Tampa, Florida
Terms Expire in 2015
Peter Holland
Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service
Lancashire, United Kingdom
Brian Hurley
Palm Beach, Florida
William McCammon
East Bay Regional Communications
System Authority
Dublin, California
Harold A. Schaitberger
International Assoc. of Fire Fighters
Washington, D.C.
William A. Stewart
Toronto Fire Services (retired)
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Peter J. Gore Willse
XL GAPS
Hartford, Connecticut
Terms Expire in 2016
Donald R. Cook
Shelby County Dept. of
Development Services
Pelham, Alabama
Tonya Hoover
Fire Marshal
Sacramento, California
Thomas Lawson
FM Global
Johnston, Rhode Island
Chief Ned Pettus, Jr.
Columbus Division of Fire
Columbus, Ohio
4
NFPA JOURNAL MARCH/APRIL 2014
Photograph: dave Yount/NFPA
*Not a member of the Board of Directors
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of NFPA Journal -March/April 2014
NFPA Journal -March/April 2014
Contents
First Word
In a Flash
Perspectives
In Compliance
First Responder
Research
Wildfire Watch
Outreach
Firewatch
In West’s Wake
Cleaning Up the Dry Cleaning Standard
The Sprinkler Difference
Conference & Expo Preview
Section Spotlight
Looking Back
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