Bill would increase ‘no burn’ days in Spokane
OLYMPIA – Worried that Spokane’s smoky winter air will again bring the ire of federal regulators, local air pollution officials want more authority to ban woodstove use on unusually smoky days.
The change would likely mean five to seven additional “no burn” days each winter, estimates Bill Dameworth, director of the Spokane County Air Pollution Control Authority. Homes where wood is the only source of heat can apply for an exemption.
Some people will be unhappy, he said, but he’s hoping to get the message out that the change is intended to prevent Spokane from once again violating federal clean-air rules, a failure that can jeopardize federal road funding.
“I personally don’t like an overly intrusive government either, but if somebody’s doing something that affects the whole community, somebody’s got to step in and tell them to knock it off,” Dameworth said. “And I guess that’s our job.”
At the agency’s request, Senate Majority Leader Lisa Brown is sponsoring a bill – which would only apply to Spokane County – allowing SCAPCA to decide what levels of airborne particles should trigger a burn ban. A similar House bill is being sponsored by Rep. Tom Campbell, R-Roy.
“This would be for a two-year window,” Brown said. “Spokane could go slightly more stringent in order to help preserve our air quality.”
The bill also calls for a study to figure out other ways to replace old, smoky woodstoves with newer “certified” stoves that produce up to 60 percent less smoke.
Dameworth said the county has to do something to clamp down on airborne particulates, which in winter in Spokane primarily come from smoke. Late last year, the federal Environmental Protection Agency cut the limit on airborne particulates nearly in half, from 65 to 35 micrograms per cubic meter of air.
Under current state law, however, air quality isn’t considered “impaired” until it reaches 35 micrograms.
“You’re kind of closing the barn door after the horse is out,” said Dameworth.
Under Brown’s Senate Bill 5745, the agency could call for burn bans before the air quality violates the federal standard. For now, Dameworth said, SCAPCA’s been asking local residents to voluntarily use other forms of heat during bad air periods.
“I can tell a lot of folks didn’t get the message,” he said.
Being able to ban burning before things get that bad, he said, is intended to prevent the Environmental Protection Agency from declaring the county an air-quality “non-attainment area.” That could lead to more onerous restrictions – and a yanking of federal transportation money from the region.
Although the agency would hold hearings for any level it might set, Dameworth said preliminary discussions suggested burn bans when particulates rise to between 70 percent and 85 percent of the federal standard. Burn bans are a proven, effective tool for cleaning up stagnant smoky air, he said.
“If push comes to shove and you have to do something right away, I don’t think anything’s as effective as just telling people not to burn until the air clears up,” he said.
As now, the burn bans would be two-tiered, he told lawmakers at a recent hearing. An initial ban applies to older, smoky stoves. A secondary ban, if needed, applies to cleaner-burning “certified” stoves.
Woodstove sellers support the bill, said Leah Hauer, who owns Spokane Fireplace and Patio. Stoves today are much cleaner than they were 20 years ago, she said.
“The stoves back then were basically very low technology. They were bulletproof metal boxes that burned a lot of wood, produced a lot of smoke, and produced a little bit of heat,” she told lawmakers last month.
She cautioned them, however, that woodstoves were critical for many families during lengthy power outages. And they’re very important for lower-income families battling with winter heating bills.
Other clean-air agencies in the state have tried other fixes, such as requiring home sellers to remove old woodstoves.
“I’m a little uncomfortable with telling someone what they can do with their house,” Dameworth said.