The Bay Area Air Quality Management District has issued the first winter Spare the Air alert of the season for Friday, banning the burning of wood or other solid fuel in the region.
The air district is issuing the alert because of a forecast for low overnight temperatures and light winds that is expected to combine with wood smoke to cause unhealthy air quality around the Bay Area.
A high pressure system over the region will act like a lid, trapping smoke close to the ground, while offshore winds may also bring more pollution from the Central Valley into the Bay Area, according to the air district.
On winter Spare the Air days, Bay Area residents and businesses are not allowed to use their fireplaces, wood stoves, pellet stoves, outdoor fire pits or any other wood-burning devices, though there are exemptions for homes without permanently installed heating and wood stoves or fireplaces are the only source of heat.
First-time violators can take a wood smoke awareness course or pay a $100 fine, while subsequent violations are subject to higher fine amounts.
The air district says exposure to wood smoke can be linked to serious respiratory or cardiac problems and is especially harmful for children and older people.
People concerned about wood smoke pollution can call (877) 4NO-BURN or visit www.baaqmd.gov to file a complaint or get more information.
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Cool. Yesterday I had a massive 9-hour bonfire to get rid of unusable, demolition and post-construction scraps. I did salvage what I could.
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Woops. I found more scrap lumber. A fire shall commence after lunch, BAAQMD be damned.
How about complying with BAAQMD for the greater good?
So what is the greater good?
Less rights? More policing by non-governmental agencies? More trophies for those who don’t earn first place? More taxes? More fines for those who have money? More let go of the bad guy because they ‘needed’ the stolen merchandise? Less law?
STAD’s are not caused by people heating their homes with wood.
The “greater good?” Sounds like mob rule. We don’t need unelected bureaucrats telling us what to do….especially when they have no proof to back up their claims.
Lamorinda Larry and concord guy have no issue kowtowing to these appointed bureaucrats that are only beholden to the democrat politicians that set up those agencies.
Learn to think for yourself.
🖕🖕🖕
Dude, how about waiting to burn your wood to avoid being a jerk? It’s gross when inversions trap woodsmoke in our canyons and valleys. Doing so threatens children’s and elders’ health. If people would just be thoughtful about burning, we wouldn’t need bureaucratic ninnies like the BAAQMD’s nark squad to write tickets. Alas, people act like selfish jerks….
@LAMORINDA LARRY….Would you like some cheese and crackers with your whine?
Dude
‘Doing so threatens elders and children’s health’ …. Wow. I have two friends who are ER visit asthma patients – that is how serious their asthma is. They do not sit there and say that we cannot burn wood, and that is hazardous to their health.
If the smoke from a walnut, almond, madrone fire is causing you respiratory ailments, then likely very cologne and perfume ia as well. So do you not wear those around elders and children?
Personally I love the smell of a fire. It is one of the greatest smells during winter.
Love the smell of cooking over burning creosote and tar!
Throw another tire on the fire!
But all the other pollution generating activities can continue. Easy to go after the little guy that doesn’t have a stable of lawyers and lobbyists. Disband BAAQMD, use the money to fix the roads. We already have the EPA.
Martinez just sent another alert about a flaring incident from the Martinez Refining Company – this incident was a Level Two. Pretty clear that MRC is not capable of safely operating.
So how was that EV battery made for your car? How safe were those mines? O … that is different, right!
Fire wood is not cheap. Also BAAQMD over estimate the number of houses that burn wood. Let the homeowners use their fireplace.
Go to Hell.
Exactly!!
It’s not winter until 12/21/23. So it’s a fall spare the air.
It is very disingenuous to make everyone believe that all of the PM 2.5 comes from people trying to beat their homes with wood. It is true that over 90% of PM 2.5 comes from sources other than people heating their homes with wood. Refineries, trucks, cars, jets, coal trains sea spray. If there were zero people heating their homes with wood there would still be STAD’s.
Don’t let facts color the BAAQMDs opinions. After all, they’re a quasi-governmental agency so they think they know what’s best for you.
They just harass the commoners and let the major polluters off the hook to get campaign donations.
Never trust a politician.
I would reply but, I have to go put more logs on the fire.
Practice enforcement at the homeless encampments
They won’t enforce it there. The BAAQMD will say it’s their only source of heat! And they will burn anything.
If you rub two Prius together really hard how may BTUs will be generated? ? ?
BAAQMD Get stuffed!!! I’m to busy for this $h*t gotta put more logs on the fire!
Well it goes through 12/17
So we’re “not allowed” to burn wood during STADs?
Who f*******died and made them overlords?
How do they k ow whether houses do/don’t have installed central heat? Or are they depending on neighbors ratting each other out – aka 1984?
BAAQMD – 🖕🖕🖕🖕🖕🖕