Nov 24, 2022

An orange sun sets in a hazy sky near the Bay Bridge on Wednesday, August 18, 2021, in Alameda, Calif.

Yalonda M.James/The Chronicle 2021

High levels of wood smoke pollution were expected to make air quality unhealthy Friday, leading regional air quality officials to ban most fires.

The Spare the Air Alert prohibits using fireplaces, wood stoves, pellet stoves, outdoor fire pits, chimneys or other wood-burning devices. The ban doesn’t apply to households with no other heat source.

Wood smoke accounts for about one-third of fine particulate matter pollution in the Bay Are during winter months, according to the Bay Area Air Quality Management District.

For more information, visit https://www.sparetheair.org/

Julie Johnson (she/her) is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: julie.johnson@sfchronicle.com

Julie Johnson covers the changing climate, sea level rise and strategies to stem California’s wildfire crisis. Before joining The Chronicle, she spent 11 years as a staff writer at the Santa Rosa Press Democrat, where she had a leading role on the breaking news team awarded the 2018 Pulitzer for coverage of the 2017 Wine Country fires. Julie has covered murderous pot deals, police corruption and marijuana’s rocky path from a black-market trade to a legitimate industry.

The post Bay Space will see a Spare the Air alert Friday appeared first on Los Gatos News And Events.

SAN FRANCISCO (BCN) – Air District officials extended a Spare the Air Alert through Monday, urging Bay Area residents not to drive on the holiday weekend to reduce smog buildup.

The air alarm for smog is paired with an air quality warning for smoke, which will also be extended until Monday, the Bay Area Air Quality Management District said.

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A combination of high temperatures, vehicle exhaust and forest fire smoke is expected to increase smog or ozone build-up.

“Restricting driving this holiday weekend can help reduce the build-up of harmful smog pollution,” said Veronica Eady, Air District senior deputy executive officer.

When a spare-the-air alarm goes off, outdoor exercise should only be done in the early hours of the morning, when ozone levels are lower, air district officials advise.

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If temperatures allow, residents should stay indoors with the windows and doors closed until the smoke subsides. If it’s too hot inside, people should go to an air cooling center or other building that provides filtered air.

The Air District also recommends that people affected by flue gas air conditioners and car ventilation systems recirculate to prevent outside air from getting inside.

Air quality measurements are available at baaqmd.gov/highs.

To find out when a spare-the-air alarm is in effect, residents can sign up for SMS notifications by sending the word “START” to 817-57, or sign up for email AirAlerts at www.sparetheair Register .org, 1 (800) HELP AIR, download the Spare the Air app or connect to Spare the Air on Facebook or Twitter.

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The post Spare the Air Alert Prolonged By way of Labor Day – CBS San Francisco appeared first on Los Gatos News And Events.