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Department of Ecology News Release - August 1, 2002
02-151
SPOKANE - Do you wonder if field burning is allowed in Whitman County today? Do you want to know which way the wind will be blowing tomorrow and whether it will push wildfires in your direction? Perhaps you're curious about air quality in Walla Walla County today?
Citizens across Washington state now have a quick way to find out if burning may occur in their vicinity or near a weekend destination. The Department of Ecology (Ecology) has launched a new Web site to give people the latest information about whether and where agricultural burning is allowed on a particular day.
"We're hoping that having quick, easy access to this site will take some of the guess work out of predicting when smoke might be a problem for people with breathing conditions," said Grant Pfeifer of Ecology's air-quality program in Spokane.
Besides ready access to the daily "burn call," citizens can link to "air quality data" to find out the status of air quality around the air-quality monitor nearest their home.
Air-quality monitors are in place throughout Washington state. Several more are being added in Eastern Washington to help Ecology decide whether air quality is good enough to allow limited burning. If air quality takes a turn for the worse, burning can be curtailed quickly so it doesn't add to the problem.
To help air quality experts make the daily decision about whether to allow burning, monitors also are located in Clarkston, Kennewick, Pullman, Walla Walla, Ritzville and Wallula and Rosalia. Soon they will be installed in LaCrosse, Starbuck, Moses Lake and Mesa. Five monitors also are located in different Spokane neighborhoods.
In addition to air quality and "burn call" information, Web site visitors also can find out how agricultural burn decisions are made, register a complaint about a smoke problem in their neighborhood and even get a weather forecast. At the same time, a farmer can log on and fill out a burn-permit application and learn more about current requirements.
Closer to town, a homeowner who wants to burn a pile of leaves can log on to another new Web site designed to help people understand complicated burn rules that change from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. Residents can find out whether outdoor burning is acceptable in their area and who to contact with questions.
All this is available by visiting http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/air/airhome.html. Click on "outdoor burning" for residential burning information. Otherwise, click on "agricultural burning."
"The Web site will be continuously improved over time, so people shouldn't expect it to look exactly the same every time they log on," Pfeifer said. " "Over time, it will contain more information and be even easier to use."
Contact: Jani Gilbert, public information, 509-456-4464; pager, 509-226-5380
Copyright © Washington State Department of Ecology. See http://www.ecy.wa.gov/copyright.html.
