Winter Spare The Air Alert In Effect Through Wednesday

BAY AREA, CA – A Winter Spare the Air Alert has been extended through Wednesday, Nov. 21, in the Bay Area. The air quality is expected to remain unhealthy in parts of the East Bay even though shifting winds and rain are expected to improve conditions elsewhere in the region, according to the Air Quality Management District, the regional agency responsible for protecting air quality in the nine-county Bay Area.

Wood burning is banned both indoors and outdoors during Winter Spare the Air days, according to the air district. The alerts have been issued every day since Nov. 9, a day after the Camp Fire started in Butte County and sent large amounts of smoke into the Bay Area.

Air district officials said moderate air quality is expected to prevail in the Bay Area on Thursday, Thanksgiving Day.

Also see: Camp Fire: Death Toll Climbs To 79, Containment Grows To 70%

It is illegal for Bay Area residents to burn wood or other solid fuels in fireplaces, wood stoves and inserts, pellet stoves, outdoor fire pits, or other wood-burning devices. The wood-burning ban is in effect for Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, southern Sonoma and southwestern Solano counties, according to the air district.

The fine particles and carcinogenic substances in wood smoke is especially harmful for children, the elderly and people with respiratory conditions, air district officials said. Smoke from wood-burning fires has been linked to illnesses such as asthma, bronchitis and lung disease.

Also see: Winter Spare The Air Season Starts In Bay Area

Residents who violate the rule for the first time have the option to take a class instead of paying a $100 fine. Residents who violate the rule a second time must pay a $500 fine, with the fine increasing for subsequent violations.

Click here for real-time air quality readings.

Kristina Houck/Patch and Bay City News Service contributed to this report.

Photo by Renee Schiavone/Patch