For the third day in a row and on Christmas Day, wood burning is banned both indoors and outdoors on Wednesday for the full 24 hours with exemptions for homes that have no other source of heat. This is now the 18th Winter Spare the Air Alert issued since Nov. 1.
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.
Anyone who violates the burning ban will be given the option of taking a wood smoke awareness class or paying a $100 fine. A second violation is increased to a $500 fine.
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.
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. (Visit www.sparetheair.org/Stay-Informed/Todays-Air-Quality/Reporting-Zones.aspx to see if your city is located within the Air District.)
For more information about the Wood Burning Rule, or to check before you burn, visit www.sparetheair.org or call 1-877-4NO-BURN.
5 comments
Ahhh but you gotta love this weather right? No rain, warm days.
FFS just kidding, wait until summer when we have no water. This is gonna be a nice dry summer!
This is ridiculous!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! All these stupid spare the air days. These never happened until stupid Obama got into office. I can’t wait until 2016. By the way, I’m still gonna light fires spare the air day or not!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
What the hell is the matter with you Arron? Barrack has nothing to do with this. I agree that the BAAQD has their heads up their ass but get real would you So many people blame others while not even having a clue. The BAAQD is a California organization. Wake up my friend, smell the coffee, or smoke, which ever you prefer.
Hold that thought, Aaron. We’ll send an inspector right over.
Spare the air days are based on the science of pollutant levels. Find yourself a person who suffers from asthma and ask them what they think of your selfishness. For the sake of a decorative fire you are OK with causing them respiratory distress?
Really?
Welcome to the age of climate change…….and not the good kind. You can deny it. You can argue until you’re blue in the face about the causes. But it’s here.
Aaron,
How selfish of you. Some of us have to breathe the air. You should try it sometime. Maybe then you could get control of yourself and your urge to overuse the ! button.
You know, with a little self control, that could actually happen by 2014. Give it a shot buckaroo!
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