Essential question: what does Judaism teach about waste management?
Questions to consider: what are our obligations towards keeping a place clean for ourselves? What are our obligations towards keeping an area clean for others?
(טו) וַיִּקG-D---אֱלֹהִ֖ים אֶת־הָֽאָדָ֑ם וַיַּנִּחֵ֣הוּ בְגַן־עֵ֔דֶן לְעׇבְדָ֖הּ וּלְשׇׁמְרָֽהּ׃
(15) G-d settled the Human in the garden of Eden, to till it and tend it.
(19) When in your war against a city you have to besiege it a long time in order to capture it, you must not destroy its trees, wielding the ax against them. You may eat of them, but you must not cut them down. Are trees of the field human to withdraw before you into the besieged city? (20) Only trees that you know do not yield food may be destroyed; you may cut them down for constructing siegeworks against the city that is waging war on you, until it has been reduced.
What is this text teaching about the nature of waste?
Shabbat 67b:14 (Talmud Bavli 450 CE to 550 CE)
Rav Zutra said: He who covers an oil lamp or who uncovers a kerosene lamp for no purpose violates the prohibition: Do not destroy, since by doing so the fuel burns more quickly.
From: Bava Kamma 82b 11-13 (Talmud Bavli 450CE)
The next halakha pertaining to Jerusalem is: And one may not establish garbage dumps in it. The Gemara explains that the reason is due to the repugnant creatures that are attracted to such heaps and impart ritual impurity upon their death.
וְאֵין עוֹשִׂין בָּהּ כִּבְשׁוֹנוֹת מִשּׁוּם קוּטְרָא
The baraita states: And one may not build kilns in Jerusalem. The reason is due to the unsightly smoke produced by kilns. The Sages sought to preserve the beauty of Jerusalem and the Temple.
וְאֵין עוֹשִׂין בָּהּ גַּנּוֹת וּפַרְדֵּסִין מִשּׁוּם סִירְחָא
The baraita teaches: And one may not plant gardens and orchards in it. This is due to the odor emitted by these places, either from discarded weeds or from fertilizer.
What is this text saying about urban planning? Who is it concerned about?
From: Mishneh Torah- Prayer and Birkat Cohanim- Moses Ben Maimon 12th Century-
The purity of the place of prayer: What is implied?
One should not pray in a place of filth, a bathhouse, a latrine or garbage heap. [Similarly, one should not pray] in a place that is not presumed to be clean until he checks it.
The general rule is that one should not pray in any place in which one would not recite the Shema. [Thus,] just as one separates oneself from excreta, urine, a foul odor, a corpse and the sight of nakedness for Kri'at Shema, so too, he should separate himself for Shemoneh Esreh.
[The following rules apply] when one finds excreta in his place [of prayer.] Since he transgressed by not checking the place before he began to pray, he must pray again in a clean place.
[The following rules apply] when one finds excreta while he is in the midst of prayer: If he can walk forwards such that [the feces] will be left four cubits behind him, he should do so. If not, he should move to the side. If he is unable [to do the latter], he should stop praying.
The great Sages would refrain from praying in a house in which there was beer or brine at the time of its foaming because of the foul odor, even though it was a clean place.
What is this text saying about the nature of tefillah (prayer) and garbage?
There is a minhag (custom) of burning chametz in the morning before Pesach.
On burning chametz safely (source OU.org)
1 – Burn only what you collect during Bedikat Chametz (not whole boxes of cereal). Do not burn plastic/aluminum foil.
2 – Never allow children near the fire.
3 – Wear gloves
4 – Try to burn inside a metal can (a garbage can)
5 – Do not burn on your lawn or near/in the woods – we have had very little rain and brush fires start VERY easily.
6 – When you do burn, please try to have a significant amount of water next to you (like a charged garden hose) so that you put the fire out if there is a problem.
7 – Do not leave the fire unattended (even for a second), even if it is just smoldering. Once the chametz has burned down to ashes, put water on it – L’halacha it is no longer edible chametz.
8 – Do not leave the ashes after you are done, wet it down/put dirt on it and throw it out.
What would Maimonides say about burning chametz in a densely populated area?
Source: Air.utah.gov
Regulations for Residential Open Burning
| Breakdown Report | Complaints | Dust Control | Terms | Solid Fuel Burning |
Open burning is a source of air pollution that is regulated by the Division of Air Quality (DAQ). There are statewide rules in place that regulate open burning activities to help minimize emissions and ensure that the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) are met. Recent modifications to these rules change the open burn periods and include a statewide requirement to obtain a permit from the local county or municipal fire authority prior to burning.
General Requirements
- The clearing index is 500 or greater. The clearing index is a measure of the atmospheric mixing and wind speed. A clearing index of 500 or less is considered poor atmospheric ventilation.
- An open burn permit application must be completed and a valid permit issued by the county or municipal fire authority prior to burning. See instructions and a link to the open burn permit application.
- Permits may be issued between March 1 and May 30 and between September 15 and November 15 in the counties of Washington, Kane, San Juan, Iron, Garfield, Beaver, Piute, Wayne, Grand, and Emery.
- Permits may be issued between March 30 and May 30 and between September 15 and October 30 in all other areas of the state.
- Materials to be burned are thoroughly dry and no trash, rubbish, tires, or oil are included in the material to be burned, used to start fires, or used to keep fires burning.
Permit Criteria
Prior to completing the open burn permit application, please consider the following:
- Location and proximity of the proposed burning to any building, other structures, neighbors, or other public areas (parks, schools, businesses, hospital, etc.) that might be impacted by the smoke and emissions from the burn.
- The clearing index must be above 500.
- Whether there is any practical alternative method for the disposal of the material to be burned.
- Methods to minimize emissions and smoke impacts such as using clean auxiliary fuel, drying the material prior to ignition, and/or separation for alternative disposal of materials that produce higher levels of emissions and smoke during the combustion process.
- For burns of piled material, all piles shall be reasonably dry and free of dirt.
- Open burns shall be supervised by a responsible person who shall notify the local fire department and have available, either on-site or by the local fire department, the means to suppress the burn.
This is for residential use. How does this code look similar to the code mentioned in the Gemara?
On Wildfires in Utah (source KUER.org)
2023 Wildfire Stats:
As of Sept. 13, there have been 687 total wildfires in Utah, burning more than 14,900 acres so far this year. Nearly 40% were human-caused. Three hundred and fourteen of those fires were determined to be caused by lightning. In 2022, at this time, there were 878 fires, down from the 1,060 fires during the same period in 2021.
Am I permitted to burn my chametz during wildfire season?
Humans are starting more of Utah's wildfires after years of mostly-natural causes by Erin Alberty for AXIOS.
An unusually low percentage of Utah's wildfires in the past 30 years was caused by humans, according to a three-decade national tally.
- Yes, but: That's probably a credit to our vast swaths of uninhabited lands more than our superior fire safety.
Driving the news: Lightning caused a bigger share of fires in Utah than almost any other state, according to an Axios analysis of wildfire data collected by the U.S. Forest Service.
- From 1992 to 2020, 40% of Utah's wildfires with known causes were ignited by humans — far lower than the national average of 85%.
- Lightning was responsible for the other 60%.
- Only Nevada and Idaho posted higher rates of lightning-caused fires.
The big picture: Areas dominated by lightning-caused fires also tend to be sparsely populated.
- To see how closely the two align, compare the national map above to this map of zero-population census areas.
- Obviously, human-caused fires require the presence of humans.
Reality check: The share of human-caused wildfires in Utah has risen steadily since around 2014, according to state data.
- That figure exploded in 2020, likely related to the skyrocketing popularity of camping, said Kayli Guild, the state's fire spokesperson.
- "There were so many abandoned campfires," Guild told Axios. "Or people were buying travel trailers, and they didn't understand that their vehicle wasn't equipped to pull the weight. … And then we saw lots of vehicle-related starts."
The latest: State officials ramped up fire safety awareness campaigns after 2020, and human causes dropped back to about half of Utah's wildfires, Guild said.
- This summer's wildfire season is quieter than usual, likely thanks to the year's moisture. But that could change in a year or two as vegetation grows into fuel.
Of note: Of Utah's human-caused wildfires, the most common incendiary activities were recreation, vehicles and open burning of debris, per the Forest Service report.
Zoom out: Open burning was the biggest national contributor to human-caused wildfires.
- Compared to national figures, more of Utah's fires were started by vehicles, guns and explosives, fireworks and recreation.
- Utahns saw fewer fires from arson, smoking and open burning, relative to national rates
How does the need to dispose of chametz relate to wildfire season? What are we (Jewish people who live in Utah) responsible for?