Air quality officials have declared the third consecutive Spare-the-Air alert for the winter season, effective in Contra Costa and more than eight other counties.
With poor air quality predicted for Friday, the Bay Area Air Quality Management District is prohibiting residents and businesses from burning wood, manufactured fire logs or any other solid fuel, both indoors and outdoors for 24 hours.
Winter air pollution is mainly caused by particulates or soot 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.
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For now, it remains illegal for Bay Area residents and businesses to use fireplaces, woodstoves and inserts, pellet stoves, outdoor fire pits, or any other wood-burning devices.
The 24-hour 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.
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In the winter, wood smoke from the 1.4 million fireplaces and wood stoves in the Bay Area contributes about one-third of the harmful particulate pollution in the air.
Before burning during the season, which extends through Feb. 29, the public is asked to check the daily burn status through one of the following methods:
• On the Air District Web sites: www.baaqmd.gov or www.sparetheair.org;
• Via the toll-free hotline 1-877-4-NO-BURN (complaints can also be filed via the hotline);
• By signing up for AirAlerts at www.sparetheair.org or phone alerts at 1-800-430-1515.
The Bay Area Air Quality Management District (www.baaqmd.gov) is the regional agency responsible for protecting air quality in the nine-county Bay Area.
