[env-trinity] Board to Ban Wood Fires

[Patrick Truman]

      Smog board wants to ban wood 
      fires on bad-air nights in winter
      Jonathan Curiel, Chronicle Staff Writer

      Tuesday, November 6, 2007

       
      It would be illegal to use residential fireplaces on nights with poor air quality under a rule being considered by Bay Area air regulators.

      Over the next three weeks, the Bay Area Air Quality Management District will hold workshops to gauge public opinion on the proposal, which would follow similar bans in Sacramento County, the San Joaquin Valley, and such Bay Area cities as Mill Valley, where people who disobey the city's wood-burning law are already subject to stiff fines. 

      Spurred by growing evidence that shows smoke from wood-burning is as bad or worse than smoke from cigarettes, the Bay Area Air Quality Management District is trying to reduce the amount of harmful particulate matter that people breathe. Children, the elderly and those with respiratory illnesses are particularly susceptible to smoke particles that emanate from wood-burning fireplaces.

      The minute particles, which enter nasal passages and lungs, can cause asthma, bronchitis, lung disease and heart disease, according to health experts. 

      The workshops, which start Wednesday in Oakland, are designed to solicit comments and explain the proposed regulation, which would cover wood-burning stoves as well as indoor and outdoor fireplaces. On days in the Bay Area when particulate matter is at its worst, wood-burning is the greatest contributing factor, accounting for 33 percent of the pollution, according to the air district. The problem is especially acute in winter, when fire-place use is high. 

      "It's the single biggest source of air pollution that individuals have the greatest power to control," said Karen Schkolnick, an air district spokeswoman. 

      The district estimates that 20 days a year would require bans on fireplace use if the rule is approved. 

      As of now, during nights when levels of particulate matter are high, the district asks residents to refrain from lighting fires. Seventy-seven percent of Bay Area residents support bans on days when air quality is poor, according to the district. The proposed fireplace requirement is supported by the American Lung Association.

      "People think wood burning is fine and healthy because it's a natural substance," said Jenny Bard, assistant director of communications and advocacy for the American Lung Association of California. "We associate the smells of wood smoke with good things, like camping and cooking over the fire. Unfortunately, we've learned that breathing these particles is the same thing as breathing tobacco smoke." 

      Last year, the Environmental Protection Agency strengthened its particulate standards, reducing by almost half the amount of such particles that can be released into the air. In the past 10 years, a growing number of Bay Area cities - including Oakland, Union City, Fremont and Los Gatos - have limited wood-burning devices. In Mill Valley, first-time violators are warned before facing a $150 fine. 

      Schkolnick said the Bay Area district's wood-burning law would mirror the regulations used in Sacramento and the San Joaquin Valley. During the 2006-07 winter, the San Joaquin Air Pollution Control District - which covers San Joaquin, Stanislaus, Merced, Madera, Fresno, Kings and Tulare counties as well as part of Kern County - issued 192 tickets to residents. The first fine is $50. Repeated violations can lead to fines of between $100 and $1,000, district spokeswoman Jaime Holt said.

      In lieu of paying a fine, first-time violators can attend a two-hour "residential wood-burning compliance school," where they learn about the pollution hazards of wood-burning, Holt said.

      Most violators in the San Joaquin Valley are initially reported by concerned neighbors, Holt said.

      Sacramento's law, adopted last month, takes effect Dec. 1 and will be enforced until Feb. 29. Because Sacramento residents haven't been adequately informed about the new regulation, no fines will be issued until next year, said Christina Ragsdale, spokeswoman for the Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District Board. 

      Besides limiting fireplace use on bad-air days, the Bay Area Air Quality Management District's proposed regulation would ban burning garbage and limits the type of fireplaces allowed in new buildings, as well as the type of wood that can be sold. 

      Online resource
      Learn more about the proposed ban:
      links.sfgate.com/ZBMF

      Get involved 
      Want to share your thoughts on the proposed fireplace ban?

      E-mail: epop at baaqmd.gov


      Web site: www.baaqmd.gov/woodsmoke.htm


      Attend a workshop:

      -- Wednesday, 1-3 p.m.

      Metropolitan Transportation Commission, Metrocenter Auditorium, 101 Eighth St., Oakland

      -- Thursday, 1-3 p.m.

      Steele Lane Community Center, Dohn Room, 415 Steele Lane, Santa Rosa

      -- Wednesday, Nov. 14, 6-8 p.m.

      San Jose State University, Costanoan Room, One Washington Square, San Jose

      -- Thursday, Nov. 15, 1-3 p.m.

      Holiday Inn, 1050 Burnett Ave., Concord

      -- Thursday, Nov. 15, 6-8 p.m.

      Ramada Inn, 1000 Admiral Callaghan Lane, Vallejo

      -- Friday, Nov. 16, 1-3 p.m.

      Seaport Conference Center, 459 Seaport Court, Redwood City

      -- Monday, Nov. 26, 6-8 p.m., Robert Livermore Community Center, 4444 East Ave., Livermore

      E-mail Jonathan Curiel at jcuriel at sfchronicle.com. 
     
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