Home Contra Costa County Dec. 28: Winter Spare the Air Alert Issued

Dec. 28: Winter Spare the Air Alert Issued

by ECT

Wood burning is banned both indoors and outdoors on Sunday for the full 24 hours.

Air quality in the Bay Area is forecast to be unhealthy. It is illegal for Bay Area residents to burn wood or other solid fuels in fireplaces, wood stoves and inserts, pellet stoves, outdoor fire-pits, or other wood-burning devices.

This wood-burning ban will be in effect for Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, southern Sonoma and southwestern Solano Counties.

Winter air pollution is mainly caused by particulates or soot pollution from wood smoke. Smoke from wood-burning fires is linked to illnesses such as asthma, bronchitis and lung disease, and is especially harmful for children and the elderly.

If one is caught in violation of a Spare the Air alert, they could face a $100 fine. A second offense is a $500 fine with additional fines thereafter could be higher.

Winter Spare the Air season runs from November 1 through February 28. The daily burn status can be found at www.baaqmd.gov, at www.sparetheair.org or by calling the air district’s hotline at (877)-4-NO-BURN.

For more information about the Wood Burning Rule, or to check before you burn, visit www.sparetheair.org or call 1-877-4NO-BURN.  You can also call 1-800-430-1515 and register to receive automatic phone calls when a Winter Spare the Air Alert has been called.

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