Stagnant Air Prompts California Officials to Extend Ban on Fireplace Use through Monday Midnight

The Air Quality Management District officials in California reported that the stagnant air over the southern California has prompted them to extend its ban on fireplace use through midnight Monday.

As per the local smog agency, the residential no-burn alert covers the South Coast Air Basin, including the greater Los Angeles area, Orange County and the Inland Empire.

As per the recent alert issued by the South Coast Air Quality Management District, residents have been prohibited from burning wood in fireplaces until midnight Monday night. The ban was set to expire at Sunday midnight but poor air quality forced the officials to extend the ban.

As per sources, the prohibition does not apply to mountain communities above 3,000 feet, the Coachella Valley or the high desert, or to residences with no other source of heat.

According to the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD), “No-burn alerts are mandatory in order to protect public health due to high concentration of fine particle air pollution forecast for area. The no-burn prohibition also applies to manufacture fire logs, such as those made from wax or paper”.

The SCAQMD’s Check Before You Burn program is in effect each winter from November through February.

In November and December, there were about five no-burn alerts issued. It is the sixth no-burn day of the month, said officials. In January, there were in total seven no-burn days, they added.

In addition, Southern California chief smog-fighting agency on Friday approved a plan Friday blaming the drought for reversing a long-term decline in fine-particle pollution.

The plan approved by the South Coast Air Quality Management District’s governing board on a 10-1 vote was criticized as weak by community activists and environmental groups.

Air quality officials said the delay in curbing dirt is the result of California’s lingering drought, which has worsened pollution across the state.