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3w ago

Bay Area Enacts Two-Day Spare the Air Alert Through Thanksgiving With Wood-Burning Ban

A new, lower PM2.5 threshold adopted in October is triggering earlier no-burn days to reduce health harms from wood smoke.

FILE: A person warms their hands over an outdoor fire pit made of bricks, with rolling hills in the hazy background.
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A person exercises in Alameda as smog covers the San Francisco skyline in December 2020. A Spare the Air alert has been issued for the Bay Area on Thanksgiving week.
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Overview

  • The alert runs Wednesday through Thanksgiving and is the season’s first Winter Spare the Air, making wood and other solid-fuel burning illegal indoors and outdoors.
  • Forecasters cite high pressure, light winds, cold nights and holiday fireplace use for trapping particulate pollution near the ground, with possible transport from the Central Valley.
  • Homes that rely on a single EPA-certified or registered pellet device as their sole heat source may qualify for exemptions, and gas, propane and electric fireplaces are allowed.
  • First-time violators may take a wood-smoke awareness course or receive a $100 ticket, with $500 fines for a second offense and higher penalties for additional violations.
  • Residents can check daily status at sparetheair.org, via the Spare the Air app or by calling 1-877-4NO-BURN, as the National Weather Service notes dense fog and the National Park Service suspends Ocean Beach fires through February.