Stage One Burn Ban Remains in Effect

 

Dec. 16, 2005 –Heading into the weekend, the Stage One Burn Ban remains in effect for King, Pierce and Snohomish Counties. The air over the Puget Sound region is expected to remain stagnant Friday and most of Saturday. Improving weather conditions are expected in Kitsap and Snohomish Counties and parts of King County as moderate winds begin to scour out the basin and eliminate the inversion by midday on Sunday. Improvements in Pierce county may be slower and the inversions may hold in pollutants into Sunday evening.

Clean Air Agency meteorologists will monitor these conditions daily, and will determine whether we can modify or cancel the Burn Ban. It is unlikely that any change in Burn Ban status will occur before Sunday, Dec.18. Please check our Web site or call our Burn Ban hotline to remain up-to-date.

About Stage One Burn Bans:

• Burn Bans are issued to protect public health when pollution levels become unhealthy.
• No burning is allowed in fireplaces or uncertified wood stoves, unless this is your only adequate source of heat. To determine if your stove is certified, visit Woodstoves and fireplaces.
• All outdoor burning is prohibited, even in areas where outdoor burning is not permanently banned.
• The use of natural gas or propane fireplaces, pellet stoves and certified wood stoves is not prohibited.
• If inspectors from the Clean Air Agency find violations of the state wood-burning laws, the agency will take enforcement action.

A reminder about other wood-burning laws:

• It is always illegal to emit excess chimney smoke and to smoke out your neighbor.
• If you burn wood, you are required to do so in a way that minimizes smoke. To learn more about clean burning techniques, visit www.burningclean.com.
• It is always illegal to burn garbage.

You can keep an eye on both air-quality forecasts and current conditions on this Web site. You can see how the Puget Sound region’s current and forecasted air-quality rate on the Air Quality Index, a color-coded system for rating the levels of pollution. Our goal is to “keep it in the green.”

For more information about Burn Ban regulations, you may refer to Chapter 173-433 of the Washington Administrative Code.

(Note: The Seattle Parks Department prohibits beach fires at Alki and Golden Gardens during the burn ban.)

The Puget Sound Clean Air Agency is an air quality management agency serving King, Kitsap, Pierce and Snohomish counties. Created as a result of the 1967 Washington Clean Air Act, the agency protects public health and improves air quality by adopting and enforcing air quality regulations, educating individuals and businesses about clean-air choices and sponsoring voluntary initiatives to improve air quality.