Mulch, compost, and decomposition all generate intense heat and a risk of fire. The larger the pile, the more fuel and insulation available to feed potential combustion. Larger piles also make it more difficult to extinguish a burning mountain of mulch.
This week’s smoldering fire at Shamrock Organic Products has clouded parts of Knoxville. While the magnitude of the current fire is larger than normal, calls to the Shamrock facility have become routine for the Knoxville Fire Department.
“[It seems like] we come out on average once a week, but it is nothing to this extent,” said Capt. D.J. Corcoran with the Knoxville Fire Department. “It’s usually just Engine 5 will come over, we will wet it down, and we’re back in service.”
It may not be once per week, but records indicate Shamrock is a very frequent stop for firefighters. A PDF copy of the incident reports from KFD indicates fire crews made 158 runs to the site at Ailor Avenue since December 2001. A couple of the calls were for medical situations unrelated to fire, but around 150 of the responses were for burning or smoking mulch and brush.
In spite of the chronic fire calls, the mulching facility has not been cited for violating any fire codes.
“There are no violations,” said Corcoran. “[The owner] is completely within his rights to have the stacks of mulch like they are.”
Shamrock has not been cited for any violations. Yet, inspections are not a routine thing according to Capt. Sonny Pardin. Pardin said inspections take place after receiving a complaint. Shamrock has been inspected three times in the last 10 years according to Pardin.
“The area that he’s got [the mulch in], he can actually stack it higher,” said Corcoran.
Knoxville Fire Code
Before 2006, Knoxville did not have a fire code specifically for mulch piles. The Fire Marshal‘s office says mulch was regulated under a code that applied to the storage of any kind of combustible material. That pre-2006 code stated combustible materials could not be piled higher than 20 feet.
In 2006 the city adopted a set of fire codes developed by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA). The NFPA standards provide specific recommendations for mulch piles.
The NFPA code adopted by Knoxville permits mulch piles as high as 60 feet tall, 300 feet wide, and 500 feet in length.
“We have mulch piles around 30 to 40 feet tall out here,” said Corcoran. “This is all within code, but you also have to turn the material so heat does not build up inside.”
Nashville not NFPA
Danny Hunt serves as Fire Marshal for the city of Nashville. Hunt told 10News he believes the NFPA standards are too lenient regarding mulch piles.
“The national standard would boggle your mind. A mulch pile can be more than 50 feet high and hundreds of feet long. That is a little more than I’m comfortable with,” said Hunt.
Hunt said most cities generally adopt a set of fire codes from one of two groups. The NFPA provides one set of standards. Another set of codes is created by the International Codes Council (ICC).
“The ICC codes are what we use in Nashville. The 2006 International Fire Code, Chapter 19, Section 1908.3 talks about the size of mulch piles allowed,” said Hunt.
ICC codes permit mulch piles no more than 25 feet in height, 150 feet wide, and 250 feet long. NFPA standards used by Knoxville allow mulch piles more than double that size.
The mulch piles at Shamrock Organic Products would be in violation of fire codes if located in Nashville.
Separation Safety
In addition to regulations on the size of mulch piles, another key component is how closely they can be located to each other.
“You would like to see smaller piles and have them separated so if one catches fire it doesn’t just run down the line and set everything on fire,” said Corcoran. “The piles here now are a lot larger than usual because we’ve had so much storm damage the last year. All of the limbs, trees, and debris from those storms are here.”
Codes require adequate separation and lanes for fire response. Large piles also require internal temperature monitoring.
“The codes as they are right now, [Shamrock] is within their rights,” said Corcoran. “Not speaking for all of KFD, but personally I think it [the fire code] probably needs to be re-evaluated.”
** 10 News Reporter Eleanor Beck contributed to this story. Written by -Jim Matheny WBIR
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