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<H1>Smog board wants to ban wood </H1>
<H1>fires on bad-air nights in winter</H1></DIV>
<P class=byline><A href="mailto:jcuriel@sfchronicle.com">Jonathan Curiel,
Chronicle Staff Writer</A></P>
<P class=date>Tuesday, November 6, 2007
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<P>It would be illegal to use residential fireplaces on nights with poor
air quality under a rule being considered by Bay Area air regulators.</P>
<P>Over the next three weeks, the Bay Area Air Quality Management District
will hold workshops to gauge public opinion on the proposal, which would
follow similar bans in Sacramento County, the San Joaquin Valley, and such
Bay Area cities as Mill Valley, where people who disobey the city's
wood-burning law are already subject to stiff fines. </P>
<P>Spurred by growing evidence that shows smoke from wood-burning is as
bad or worse than smoke from cigarettes, the Bay Area Air Quality
Management District is trying to reduce the amount of harmful particulate
matter that people breathe. Children, the elderly and those with
respiratory illnesses are particularly susceptible to smoke particles that
emanate from wood-burning fireplaces.</P>
<P>The minute particles, which enter nasal passages and lungs, can cause
asthma, bronchitis, lung disease and heart disease, according to health
experts. </P>
<P>The workshops, which start Wednesday in Oakland, are designed to
solicit comments and explain the proposed regulation, which would cover
wood-burning stoves as well as indoor and outdoor fireplaces. On days in
the Bay Area when particulate matter is at its worst, wood-burning is the
greatest contributing factor, accounting for 33 percent of the pollution,
according to the air district. The problem is especially acute in winter,
when fire-place use is high. </P>
<P>"It's the single biggest source of air pollution that individuals have
the greatest power to control," said Karen Schkolnick, an air district
spokeswoman. </P>
<P>The district estimates that 20 days a year would require bans on
fireplace use if the rule is approved. </P>
<P>As of now, during nights when levels of particulate matter are high,
the district asks residents to refrain from lighting fires. Seventy-seven
percent of Bay Area residents support bans on days when air quality is
poor, according to the district. The proposed fireplace requirement is
supported by the American Lung Association.</P>
<P>"People think wood burning is fine and healthy because it's a natural
substance," said Jenny Bard, assistant director of communications and
advocacy for the American Lung Association of California. "We associate
the smells of wood smoke with good things, like camping and cooking over
the fire. Unfortunately, we've learned that breathing these particles is
the same thing as breathing tobacco smoke." </P>
<P>Last year, the Environmental Protection Agency strengthened its
particulate standards, reducing by almost half the amount of such
particles that can be released into the air. In the past 10 years, a
growing number of Bay Area cities - including Oakland, Union City, Fremont
and Los Gatos - have limited wood-burning devices. In Mill Valley,
first-time violators are warned before facing a $150 fine. </P>
<P>Schkolnick said the Bay Area district's wood-burning law would mirror
the regulations used in Sacramento and the San Joaquin Valley. During the
2006-07 winter, the San Joaquin Air Pollution Control District - which
covers San Joaquin, Stanislaus, Merced, Madera, Fresno, Kings and Tulare
counties as well as part of Kern County - issued 192 tickets to residents.
The first fine is $50. Repeated violations can lead to fines of between
$100 and $1,000, district spokeswoman Jaime Holt said.</P>
<P>In lieu of paying a fine, first-time violators can attend a two-hour
"residential wood-burning compliance school," where they learn about the
pollution hazards of wood-burning, Holt said.</P>
<P>Most violators in the San Joaquin Valley are initially reported by
concerned neighbors, Holt said.</P>
<P>Sacramento's law, adopted last month, takes effect Dec. 1 and will be
enforced until Feb. 29. Because Sacramento residents haven't been
adequately informed about the new regulation, no fines will be issued
until next year, said Christina Ragsdale, spokeswoman for the Sacramento
Metropolitan Air Quality Management District Board. </P>
<P>Besides limiting fireplace use on bad-air days, the Bay Area Air
Quality Management District's proposed regulation would ban burning
garbage and limits the type of fireplaces allowed in new buildings, as
well as the type of wood that can be sold. </P>
<H3 class=subhead>Online resource</H3>
<H3 class=subhead>Learn more about the proposed ban:</H3>
<P><A href="http://links.sfgate.com/ZBMF"
target=_BLANK>links.sfgate.com/ZBMF</A></P>
<DIV class=infobox>
<H3>Get involved </H3>
<P>Want to share your thoughts on the proposed fireplace ban?</P>
<P><STRONG>E-mail</STRONG>: <EM><A
href="mailto:epop@baaqmd.gov">epop@baaqmd.gov</A></EM></P>
<P><EM></EM></P>
<P><STRONG>Web site</STRONG>: <EM><A
href="http://www.baaqmd.gov/woodsmoke.htm">www.baaqmd.gov/woodsmoke.htm</A></EM></P>
<P><EM></EM></P>
<P><STRONG>Attend a workshop</STRONG>:</P>
<P>-- Wednesday, 1-3 p.m.</P>
<P>Metropolitan Transportation Commission, Metrocenter Auditorium, 101
Eighth St., Oakland</P>
<P>-- Thursday, 1-3 p.m.</P>
<P>Steele Lane Community Center, Dohn Room, 415 Steele Lane, Santa
Rosa</P>
<P>-- Wednesday, Nov. 14, 6-8 p.m.</P>
<P>San Jose State University, Costanoan Room, One Washington Square, San
Jose</P>
<P>-- Thursday, Nov. 15, 1-3 p.m.</P>
<P>Holiday Inn, 1050 Burnett Ave., Concord</P>
<P>-- Thursday, Nov. 15, 6-8 p.m.</P>
<P>Ramada Inn, 1000 Admiral Callaghan Lane, Vallejo</P>
<P>-- Friday, Nov. 16, 1-3 p.m.</P>
<P>Seaport Conference Center, 459 Seaport Court, Redwood City</P>
<P>-- Monday, Nov. 26, 6-8 p.m., Robert Livermore Community Center, 4444
East Ave., Livermore</P></DIV>
<P><I>E-mail Jonathan Curiel at <A
href="mailto:jcuriel@sfchronicle.com">jcuriel@sfchronicle.com</A>.</I>
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