Politics & Government

Lake Elsinore, Wildomar Residents Prohibited From Burning Wood In Fireplaces On Dec. 18

The no-burn alert is applicable on Dec. 18 due to elevated fine particulate levels that are forecast.

The South Coast Air Quality Management District has issued another no-burn alert for residents of the greater L.A. metro area, Orange County and Inland Empire on Wednesday Dec. 18.

The no-burn alert means residents living below 3,000 feet "are not permitted to burn wood in their fireplaces tomorrow" due to elevated fine particulate levels forecast for Wednesday, district officials said.

"Residents in these areas are prohibited from burning wood or manufactured fire logs in their fireplaces from midnight tonight to midnight on Wednesday," district officials said.

Violators could be required to pay a first-time fine of $50 or complete a "smoke awareness class" online, SCAQMD spokesman Sam Atwood said Tuesday in a phone interview.

"We hope people comply voluntarily but if we get complaints we will follow up and investigate," Atwood said. "When we do investigate we're not going to contact any residents or knock on any doors."

A district inspector would have to witness smoke from a chimney firsthand to issue a violation, Atwood said.

The South Coast Air Quality Management District's no-burn alerts do not apply to mountain communities above 3,000 feet elevation, the Coachella Valley and the High Desert, district officials said.

"Homes that rely on wood as a sole source of heat, low-income households and those without natural gas service also are exempt from the requirement," district officials said.

Specific exemptions listed by the district include:

- Households above an elevation of 3,000 feet

- Wood-burning devices that are a household's sole source of heat

- Low-income households

- Properties where there is no existing infrastructure for natural gas service within 150 feet of the property line

- Ceremonial fires exempted under Rule 444 - Open Burning

On a no-burn day, residents can enter their ZIP code at www.aqmd.gov to see if they live in an affected area, district officials said. Residents can also sign up for daily reports on air quality and Check Before You Burn alerts at www.airalerts.org or call SCAQMD's 24-hour Check Before You Burn toll-free line at (866) 966-3293.

The district's Check Before You Burn Map for Dec. 18 incorrectly includes portions of the San Jacinto Mountains above 3,000 feet elevation and the district is working on fixing the map, Atwood said Tuesday.

SCAQMD'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.

No-burn alerts are called when air quality is forecast to be elevated due to fine particulate levels (PM2.5).  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.

For more info on Check Before You Burn and alternatives to wood burning, see www.healthyhearths.org. --By Guy McCarthy


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