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Wood burning season starts Thursday By PAUL FATTIG Thursday morning sparks the annual seasonal regulations for Jackson County's wood-burning curtailment area. From November through February, residents within the area can call the county's air-quality hotline at 776-9000 each day to determine whether it's OK to fire up the wood stove or fireplace. The daily recording will inform the caller whether it's a green, yellow or red day for wood heat in the wood-burning curtailment area. The area includes Ashland, Talent, Phoenix, Medford, Central Point, Jacksonville and a portion of the county. Under Jackson County's color-coded system to allow wood-stove burning, green indicates that smoke levels are low and good air circulation is predicted. On those days, burning is permitted in both certified and noncertified stoves, with an opacity limit of 50 percent. Such a smoke plume obscures 50 percent of objects viewed through it. On yellow and red days, burning is allowed only in certified stoves, provided no visible emissions are produced. A yellow day means smoke levels are rising during a time of predicted poor air circulation. A red day indicates that smoke levels are approaching unhealthy levels when the air is stagnant. Wood stoves are certified by the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality or the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. All certified stoves were built after 1985 and have a permanently affixed label. The problem, explained Gary Stevens, the county's environmental health program manager, is that the Rogue Valley is susceptible to air pollution caused by winter temperature inversions. The surrounding mountains reduce air flow and trap pollutants on the valley floor. The Rogue Valley once had smoke and carbon monoxide levels that regularly violated federal standards. Jackson County's wood smoke ordinances were adopted in 1989. The last "red" day for wood stoves was recorded a decade ago. Jackson County's air quality program allows wood burning for heat based on the level of tiny smoke particles in the air. Smoke particles impair visibility and aggravate breathing problems for people with asthma, emphysema and other respiratory ailments. "The arrival of wet weather lessens the threat of fires," Stevens said. "However, the cold weather also increases the use of wood stoves and fireplaces, which can lead to smoke and pollution problems, problems that harm the environment and people's health," Stevens said. "That is why we stress that people follow proper burning guidelines, both inside and outside their homes," he added. During the same period that the wood-heating program is in effect, open and barrel burning is prohibited in Jackson County's Air Quality Maintenance Area. That area extends beyond the wood-burning curtailment area to include the city of Eagle Point. Open burning outside the AQMA is allowed only if the ventilation index is more than 400. To hear a daily updated recording for open burning outside the AQMA in Jackson County, call 776-7007. Residents in Rogue River may call 582-2876. The number in Josephine County is 476-9663. The open burning program is not regulated by the color-coded system, which is intended only for wood stoves and fireplaces. For more information about any of the burning regulations or to find out if you are in the air quality or wood-burning curtailment areas, call the Jackson County Air Quality Program office at 774-8207 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. weekdays. Reach reporter Paul Fattig at 776-4496 or e-mail him at [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.