This wintry week surprised Southern California with shape-shifting clouds hitched to chilly wind, rain in the valleys, snow in the mountains -- just right for a cozy Valentine's Day spent corralled around the hearth, logs ablaze. Or is it?
These days, environmental concerns and new governmental regulations about wood-burning fireplaces give some people pause. Burn wood logs and you create pollution. Burn natural gas and you consume a nonrenewable resource. Residents are left wondering: What is the future of the fireplace, the figurative heart of the home, the focal point around which we arrange furniture, the sentimental place where we gather families?
New regulations apply to wood-burning fireplaces specifically. In March the South Coast Air Quality Management District passed Rule 445, which regulates permanent indoor and outdoor wood-burning devices, spokesman Sam Atwood said. The rules, some of which went into effect last year, apply to Orange County and large portions of Los Angeles, Riverside and San Bernardino counties. Since October, the estimated 5 million households and 16.5 million people covered by the district can no longer add an open-hearth, wood-burning fireplace to an existing residence or to their yard.
Starting March 9, wood-burning fireplaces no longer will be legal in newly constructed homes covered by the district. Only gas hearths will be allowed.
In November 2011, the AQMD may begin to restrict the burning of wood. Even if an old wood-burning fireplace is legal, using it could be limited, in specific regions, on days when air quality is forecast to be unsafe.
"The 'no burn day' requirement is a pretty reasonable lifestyle adjustment for people, considering the beneficial impact on the environment," Atwood said. "The rule is in line with Denver and cities in the Northwest which have had these kind of restrictions for more than 20 years."
The reasons are compelling. As more households grow conscious of their carbon footprints, it's only natural that efforts to recycle waste, save water and minimize household toxins would be complemented by attempts to limit the pollution we release into the air. Burning wood creates tiny particulate matter called PM2.5, which is small enough to "lodge deep in the lungs and cause a variety of respiratory health problems," according to studies cited by the AQMD.
Still, some question the new rules.
