FEMA (Fire Equipment Manufacturers’ Association) recently commissioned a new study on the role portable extinguishers play in reducing carbon monoxide in a building with automatic sprinklers. It found that portable fire extinguishers can reduce fire-related CO2 in a building by over 93% beyond sprinklers on their own. When sprinklers and portable extinguishers are used together, fire-related carbon emissions are cut by 99%.
The benefits of adding fire extinguishers to a building’s fire protection to reduce its carbon footprint can readily be seen when evaluating emergency response to a fire. These can be categorized into three areas:
