Air Time: Tis the Season – for hazy skies, wood smoke, burn bans, tips on burning clean

By Joye Redfield-Wilder, communication manager, Central Regional Office

Tis the Season — the season for SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder) or just as easily “SAQD (Seasonal Air Quality Disorder).” When temperatures drop, smoke will increase in many Washington communities as we begin nesting and fire up wood-burning devices to heat our homes.

When smoke combines with diesel emissions and other tiny pollution particles, air quality can quickly degrade. That sometimes results in bans on burning. Wood smoke is one of the most serious air pollution problems in Washington.

Communities in both Eastern and Western Washington suffer poor air quality during the home heating season and can be at risk of failing to meet state and federal air quality standards to protect human health. But there’s something people can do to help.

That’s burning clean or choosing another way to heat your home.

Burning wood can be a cheap way to heat your home if done correctly.

Here’s a video on how to operate your woodstove more efficiently.

More on that and burn bans is available on Ecology’s Air Quality web site.

See the Ecology News Release: Hazy skies call for clean burning to help avoid burn bans

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