Posted by Hank on Friday, November 25, 2005 at 9:43PM :
In Reply to: Re: ban on wood burning posted by Nickathome on Thursday, November 24, 2005 at 9:18PM :
Wood-burning ban in effect today
Reduced traffic over Thanksgiving also may help clear skies, officials say
Michael Clancy
The Arizona Republic
Nov. 23, 2005 12:00 AM
Wood burning was banned for the first time this season in Maricopa County as air-quality authorities declared a high-pollution alert for Tuesday and today.
The timing is both good and bad.
Thanksgiving celebrations may have to go on without a festive fireplace fire. And authorities are urging less driving just as the Christmas shopping season kicks off.
But the four-day holiday weekend, with most people off work, could cut down on automobile emissions enough to clear the skies, even with Friday's shopping madness.
The high-particulate advisory, issued by the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality, triggered the no-burn alert, the first of the fall-winter pollution season. The alert applies to fireplaces and wood stoves. Use of outdoor fire pits is OK but discouraged.
The foglike gunk responsible for the advisory encompassed downtown Phoenix and lower parts of the Valley on Tuesday morning.
It eased off as the day warmed up. Health officials say the high-pollution alert is in place until midnight today but could be extended.
The culprit is small particulates, the so-called PM-10, made up of dust and products of combustion from engines and fireplaces that linger in the air.
The advisory level is deemed "unhealthy for sensitive groups," especially children, people with respiratory ailments and the elderly.
"You can't feel it, taste it or smell it," said Holly Ward, spokeswoman for Maricopa County's air-quality department.
But you could see it clearly on Tuesday morning, as the layer appeared to rise not much higher than downtown Phoenix's 40-story Bank One Center.
Ward said a fire in the northwest Valley may have contributed to the smog, but "there is no specific source we can point to."
"Dust is being produced, and the wind is stagnant, so the pollutants are not being carried out of the Valley, they are just hanging around," she said.
Ward said the reduced traffic on Thanksgiving Day would be one big help. She added that traffic on Friday, even with holiday shopping, should be less than a normal workday.
Air-quality inspectors will watch for fires on their normal rounds, and citizens may call in complaints.
First violations earn a warning, with fines for second and third violations.
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