January 8, 2013
Residents Directed Not to Burn Wood in Affected
Areas
Residents in specified areas of Los Angeles and Orange counties are not
permitted to burn wood in their fireplaces tomorrow due to unhealthy air
quality forecast by South Coast Air Quality Management District (AQMD).
Under AQMD’s Check Before You Burn program, residents in the affected areas
only are prohibited from burning wood or manufactured fire logs in their
fireplaces or outdoor fire pits from midnight tonight to midnight on
Wednesday.
The affected area stretches from Marina del Rey in the north to Laguna
Niguel in the south and Anaheim Hills in the east. It is bordered by the
following streets and freeways: State Hwy. 90 and Slauson Boulevard, the 110
Freeway, the 91 Freeway; the 241 and 261 Toll Roads, Jamboree Road, the 405
Freeway and Crown Valley Parkway.
Residents can enter their ZIP code at
www.aqmd.gov after midnight tonight to see if they live in an affected
area. They can also sign up for daily reports on air quality and Check
Before You Burn alerts at
www.airalerts.org.
Cities and areas included in tomorrow’s no-burn alert include:
· South and southwest Los Angeles County coastal areas including Los
Angeles International Airport, Westchester, Culver City, Inglewood,
Torrance, Lomita, Hawthorne, Gardena, Lawndale, Hermosa Beach, Manhattan
Beach, Redondo Beach, El Segundo, Harbor City, Palos Verdes Estates, Rancho
Palos Verdes, Rolling Hills, Rolling Hills Estates, San Pedro, Carson, Long
Beach, Wilmington, Signal Hill, Lakewood, Cerritos, Artesia, Bellflower,
Compton and Hawaiian Gardens; and
· North and central Orange County areas including Anaheim, Orange, Villa
Park and Tustin Foothills, Santa Ana, Costa Mesa, Fountain Valley,
Westminster, Rossmoor, Los Alamitos, Garden Grove, Stanton, Cypress, La
Palma and Buena Park, Seal Beach, Westminster, Huntington Beach, Fountain
Valley, Newport Beach, Corona Del Mar, Laguna Beach, Laguna Hills, Laguna
Niguel, Laguna Woods, Aliso Viejo, Lake Forest, and Irvine.
Clean-burning natural gas-fueled fireplaces are exempt from AQMD’s no-burn
alerts. AQMD offers a discount of up to $125 at participating retailers
toward the purchase and professional installation of gas log sets. See
www.healthyhearths.org for
details on the incentive program.
AQMD’s Check Before You Burn program, in effect each winter from Nov. 1 to
the end of February, is designed to protect public health by minimizing
harmful wood smoke from residential wood burning. Wood smoke contains
hundreds of contaminants including PM2.5, a pollutant linked to increased
emergency room visits and hospitalizations, as well as increased risk of
heart attacks and early deaths.
Check Before You Burn alerts are called when air quality is predicted to be
in the Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups range or higher due to fine
particulate levels. This occurs when PM2.5 levels are forecast to be higher
than 35 micrograms per cubic meter during a 24-hour average.
The program applies to residents of the South Coast Air Basin, which
includes all of Orange County and the non-desert portions of Los Angeles,
Riverside and San Bernardino counties. Mountain communities above 3,000 feet
in elevation are exempt, as are homes that rely on wood as a sole source of
heat, low-income households and those without natural gas service.
Residents who burn wood in their fireplaces when a no-burn alert has been
issued could, for a first time violator, be fined $50 or attend a wood smoke
awareness course in lieu of a fine. For a second violation, the fine
increases to $150 or a resident may install a dedicated gas-fueled
fireplace. Third time violators will receive a $500 fine or may fund a
project that will benefit the environment. Multiple violations are accrued
only if they occur during a single wood-burning season, November through
February. To report a suspected violation, residents may call 1-800-CUT-SMOG
(1-800-288-7664) or visit www.aqmd.gov.
For further information on Check Before You Burn and alternatives to wood
burning, see www.healthyhearths.org,
AQMD is the air pollution control agency for Orange County and major
portions of Los Angeles, San Bernardino and Riverside counties.
|
