A No-Burn Day notice was in place for residents in the South Coast Air Basin in California over the weekend, with air quality messages issued by the National Weather Service (NWS).
Why It Matters
No-Burn Days are implemented to safeguard public health when fine particle pollution levels are expected to be high in the South Coast Air Basin.
Smoke particles can penetrate deep into the lungs, leading to health issues such as asthma attacks, increased emergency room visits, and hospitalizations.
What To Know
South Coast Air Quality Management District (AQMD) extended a residential No-Burn Day alert from Saturday to Sunday.
During this time, the use of fireplaces or any indoor or outdoor wood-burning devices is prohibited.
The No-Burn rule also bans the burning of wood and manufactured fire logs, including those made from wax or paper.
The South Coast Air Basin includes Orange County and non-desert portions of Los Angeles, Riverside, and San Bernardino counties.
South Coast AQMD—the air pollution control agency for all of Orange County and the urban portions of Los Angeles, Riverside and San Bernardino counties—covers an area of 10,743 square miles that is home to more than 16.8 million people.
An air quality alert from the NWS advised that those in an area with poor air quality should , avoid intense outdoor activity and remain inside with windows and doors closed. Air conditioners or air purifiers should be run, while devices that pull in air from outdoors should not be used.
No-Burn Day alerts do not apply to mountain communities above 3,000 feet in elevation, the Coachella Valley, or the High Desert.
Exemptions also apply to homes that rely solely on wood for heating, low-income households, and residences without natural gas service. Gas and other non-wood-burning fireplaces are not subject to the restrictions, South Coast AQMD’s notice said.
What People Are Saying
South Coast AQMD said in its advisory: “Do your part to help keep our air clean by not burning wood during the mandatory wood burning ban.”
It added: “No-Burn Days are based on fine particulate pollution that is forecasted [sic] for an entire 24-hour period, which may not be reflected in real-time air quality maps.”
What Happens Next
South Coast AQMD’s Check Before You Burn program runs from November through the end of February, during peak particulate pollution levels.
So far, 25 No-Burn Day alerts have been issued for the 2024-2025 season, it said.
At the time of writing, the air quality alerts were in effect for all of Saturday and Sunday.
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