# Presentation: 722388

## Check Before You BurnNavigating Perceptions vs. Reality

**Check Before You Burn****Navigating Perceptions vs. Reality**

- Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District
*Jamie Arno and Lori Kobza*
- April 8, 2008
- National Air Quality Conference

## Public workshops and hearings took place in July, August and September 2007
Board of Directors requested options 
Very emotional and political topic
Rule 421 – Mandatory Episodic Curtailment of Wood and Solid Fuel Burning Restrictions was adopted October 25, 2007

- Board of Directors requested options
- Very emotional and political topic
*Rule 421 – Mandatory Episodic Curtailment of Wood and Solid Fuel Burning Restrictions* was adopted October 25, 2007

**SMAQMD Rule 421****Background Information**

## Four-level program based on new PM 2.5 standard (35 ug/m3)
Stage 2 – All Burning Prohibited (forecast to exceed 40 ug/m3)
Stage 1 – No Burn – Unless Exempt (36-40 ug/m3)
Burning Discouraged – Voluntary (26-35 ug/m3)
Burn Cleanly – No Restrictions (25 ug/m3 or lower)
Program uses micrograms per cubic meter, not AQI numbers

- Stage 2 – All Burning Prohibited (forecast to exceed 40 ug/m3)
- Stage 1 – No Burn – Unless Exempt (36-40 ug/m3)
- Burning Discouraged – Voluntary (26-35 ug/m3)
- Burn Cleanly – No Restrictions (25 ug/m3 or lower)
- Program uses micrograms per cubic meter, not AQI numbers

**SMAQMD Rule 421****Background continued**

## Slide 4

- First season: December 1, 2007 – February 29, 2008 (in future it will begin November 1)
- Public needed to be aware of new law prior to December 1
- Public and media used to AQI, but new AQI not developed yet for lower PM 2.5 standard
- SMAQMD chose not to use old standard’s AQI numbers
- Limited outreach on PM and wood smoke had just started in 2006 so topic relatively new to public

**Outreach Challenges**

## Web site coverage:
www.AirQuality.org
www.SpareTheAir.com

Daily features:
Burn status category (same day and next day forecasts) – with category descriptions
Frequently asked questions
Rule 421 text
Exemption details
Link to District’s wood stove changeout incentive program

- _[www.AirQuality.org](http://www.airquality.org/)_
- _[www.SpareTheAir.com](http://www.sparetheair.com/)_
- Daily features:
- Burn status category (same day and next day forecasts) – with category descriptions
- Frequently asked questions
- Rule 421 text
- Exemption details
- Link to District’s wood stove changeout incentive program

**Outreach Summary**

## Outreach Summary

- Over 600 business and community partners distributed **Check Before You Burn** brochure and Frequently Asked Questions flier
- Schools, retailers, chambers of commerce, Sacramento Association of REALTORS
- 46,000 English brochures and fliers
- 11,000 Spanish brochures and fliers
- Established toll-free number:
- 1-877-NO-BURN-5 (1-877-662-8765)

## Worked with TV meteorologists to get daily burn status mentioned as part of their report
Provided CD of Check Before You Burn category graphics to each station

All 5 local television stations placed 
    Check Before You Burn 
	on their Web sites linking viewers to the District’s daily burn page
Homeowners Association Web sites linked to daily burn page

- Provided CD of **Check Before You Burn** category graphics to each station
- All 5 local television stations placed
**    ****Check Before You Burn**
- 	on their Web sites linking viewers to the District’s daily burn page
- Homeowners Association Web sites linked to daily burn page

**Outreach Summary**

## Sacramento Bee newspaper partnership effective with addition of daily burn status graphic to weather page
Print coverage was both immediate and ongoing:
Daily, bi-weekly, and monthly newspapers
Homeowners Association newsletters

- Print coverage was both immediate and ongoing:
- Daily, bi-weekly, and monthly newspapers
- Homeowners Association newsletters

**Outreach Summary**

## Radio Commercial:
11 weeks on 10 stations, both Spanish & English
$126,000 spent on radio buy
Print Ads:
21 community newspapers throughout Sacramento County – including Spanish, Ukrainian and Chinese
Insertions in November, December and January
$30,000 spent on print advertising

- 11 weeks on 10 stations, both Spanish & English
- $126,000 spent on radio buy
- Print Ads:
- 21 community newspapers throughout Sacramento County – including Spanish, Ukrainian and Chinese
- Insertions in November, December and January
- $30,000 spent on print advertising

**Advertising**

## Same media market as neighboring San Joaquin Valley Air District’s existing Check Before You Burn program
San Joaquin’s program currently based on old PM 2.5 standard (65 ug/m3)
San Joaquin higher threshold for no burn
Sacramento County would call more no burn days

- San Joaquin’s program currently based on *old* PM 2.5 standard (65 ug/m3)
- San Joaquin higher threshold for no burn
- Sacramento County would call more no burn days

**Media Challenges**

## Four level program with Stage 1 – No Burn – Unless Exempt allowing an extra exemption for EPA Phase II certified devices or pellet stoves
One TV/Web anchor and one radio personality encouraged the public to ignore the law and burn
Church of the Eternal Flame established on-line as anchor’s way of claiming Rule 421’s religious exemption
Radio personality aggressively and repeatedly attacked program – told people to burn

- One TV/Web anchor and one radio personality encouraged the public to ignore the law and burn
- Church of the Eternal Flame established on-line as anchor’s way of claiming Rule 421’s religious exemption
- Radio personality aggressively and repeatedly attacked program – told people to burn

**Media Challenges**

## Perceptions vs. Reality

**Many misconceptions:**
- 1. 	“This a total ban on fireplaces” – **NO**
- 2.	“Manufactured firelogs are ok to use on
- 	no-burn day” – **NO**
- 3.	“Police should be tracking down criminals, not looking for smoke” – **Law enforcement not involved, District has own enforcement staff**

## Perception and Reality

**Misconceptions continued:**
- 4.	“You don’t have the right to knock on my door” – **Nobody sets foot on property, visual detection only**
- 5.** “**There’s nothing wrong with wood smoke” – **health effects are indisputable, but public awareness is critical to acceptance of no burn**

**Perceptions vs. Reality**

## Forecasting PM 2.5 is the same as forecasting ozone – NO
Ozone vs. Particles:
Ozone – gas created through a single reaction of precursors in sunlight
Without a given set of ingredients, high ozone does not occur
PM 2.5 – made up of many different chemical compounds, which can form in different ways
Sunlight-driven chemical reactions
Formed in presence of water (i.e. fog or clouds)
Directly emitted from sources (i.e. fireplaces)

- Ozone vs. Particles:
- Ozone – gas created through a single reaction of precursors in sunlight
- Without a given set of ingredients, high ozone does not occur
- PM 2.5 – made up of many different chemical compounds, which can form in different ways
- Sunlight-driven chemical reactions
- Formed in presence of water (i.e. fog or clouds)
- Directly emitted from sources (i.e. fireplaces)

**PM 2.5 ****Forecasting Issues**

## Needed to quickly revamp forecast tools and techniques
Forecast for lower PM 2.5 concentration cutpoints than used in 2006-07 program
Forecast to accommodate 4-level Check Before You Burn program
The smallest No Burn category only encompasses 5 ug/m3
Stage 1: 35.5 to 40.4 ug/m3

- Forecast for lower PM 2.5 concentration cutpoints than used in 2006-07 program
- Forecast to accommodate 4-level **Check Before You Burn** program
- The smallest No Burn category only encompasses 5 ug/m3
- Stage 1: 35.5 to 40.4 ug/m3

**PM 2.5 ****Forecasting Issues**

## Air Alert e-mail notification system added 2,278 Sacramento County subscribers through December
Toll-free daily burn status line 877-NOBURN-5 (877-662-8765) generated almost 21,000 calls in the first month alone
Survey in December showed 64% of respondents recalled seeing or hearing an ad about the Check Before You Burn program telling them to visit a Web site or dial a toll-free number each day

- Toll-free daily burn status line 877-NOBURN-5 (877-662-8765) generated almost ***21,000 calls*** in the first month alone
- Survey in December showed 64% of respondents recalled seeing or hearing an ad about the Check Before You Burn program telling them to visit a Web site or dial a toll-free number each day

**Success Story – so far!**

## 82% of respondents aware that burning wood in residential fireplaces causes pollution (up from 76% in 2006)
21 visual detections by enforcement staff on the Stage 1 – No Burn days (8)
120 letters sent out based on citizen complaints (compared to 19 last year without Check Before You Burn)

- 21 visual detections by enforcement staff on the Stage 1 – No Burn days (8)
- 120 letters sent out based on citizen complaints (compared to 19 last year without **Check Before You Burn**)

**Success Story – so far!**