Search

The Air District continues to take steps to ensure air quality and public health are protected in the Bay Area during the latest phases of the COVID pandemic. This includes keeping our 375 Beale Street office in San Francisco closed until further notice, except for deliveries.

The Air District is inviting residents to provide input on revisions to Regulation 2, Rule 5 – New Source Review of Toxic Air Contaminants. The Air District’s New Source Review Program protects air quality when large air pollution sources such as factories and power plants are newly built or modified.

The Bay Area, San Joaquin, and South Coast Air Districts, in cooperation with the California Air Resources Board, are hosting a public stakeholder workgroup meeting about the implementation of California’s $423 million allocation of the Volkswagen Environmental Mitigation Trust on Monday, May 6 at 10 AM in San Francisco. 

The Air District is announcing a new air monitoring station in Benicia as part of the agency’s efforts to establish or expand air monitoring stations in areas where large sources of pollution may contribute to localized pollution sources that are not captured by the Air District’s existing network.

Building on decades of reducing health risk and championing breathing equity for its most vulnerable communities, the Air District is reporting that industries are taking early actions to reduce their health impacts on local residents as part of the implementation of the nation’s most stringent toxic air pollution regulation. 

The Air District is asking Bay Area residents to not burn wood in their fireplaces or woodstoves over the Christmas holiday to keep air quality from becoming unhealthy. Gathering around a fireplace may be a Christmas tradition for many, but there are serious health impacts associated with wood burning.

The Air District is extending the Spare the Air Alert for smog through Tuesday, September 6. Air quality is forecast to be unhealthy. Ongoing triple-digit temperatures combined with light winds and vehicle exhaust are expected to continue causing unhealthy smog, or ozone, accumulation in the Bay Area.

The Air District is asking residents to not burn wood over the Thanksgiving holiday to help reduce air pollution and protect public health. As we enter the holiday season, gathering around a fireplace may be a tradition for many, but there are serious health impacts associated with wood burning.

The Air District is partnering with Regional Asthma Prevention Management, or RAMP, a project of the Public Health Institute, to provide portable air filtration units to low-income residents diagnosed with poorly-controlled asthma who are enrolled in the state’s Asthma Mitigation Project to receive in-home asthma care services.

The Air District and Contra Costa Health Services are working together to investigate all potential sources of odors that fouled the air in San Francisco and Point Richmond earlier this week. Sources under investigation include the Richmond Chevron Refinery, West Contra Costa County Composting Facility, shipping traffic, and sewage treatment facilities.

The Air District is issuing an air quality advisory due to smoke from a structure fire in Redwood City for the afternoon of Monday, June 3. Localized smoke impacts are possible near and downwind of the construction facility including Redwood City, Palo Alto, Mountain View, Santa Clara and into San Jose.

The Air District will host a public learning session on Tuesday, October 22, virtually via Zoom, regarding adopted rules (“Building Appliance Rules”) impacting nitrogen oxide, or NOx, emissions from natural gas-fired water heating appliances. Members of the public are invited to attend, learn, and ask questions about these rules.

Twenty three shipping companies participated in the Protecting Blue Whales & Blue Skies vessel speed reduction program in 2022, contributing to cleaner air, safer whales, and a quieter ocean.  Companies are recognized for their vessels transiting at ten knots or less in the San Francisco Bay Area and the Southern California region. 

Effective July 1, the Air District is expanding the Vehicle Buy Back Program, which takes older, high-polluting vehicles off the road that would otherwise likely remain in operation. The program is increasing the incentive amount to $2,000 per vehicle and including vehicles that are model year 2000 and older.

The Air District is announcing the availability of $10 million dollars to fund equipment replacement and supportive infrastructure projects for the Proposition 1B Goods Movement Program. Funds will be used to assist owners of diesel-fueled equipment that moves freight in California’s major trade corridors. Applications are due by October 28, 2021.

The Bay Area Air Quality Management District is advising Bay Area residents of the possibility that smoke from the wildfires around California may impact parts of Marin, Napa, Sonoma and Solano counties. Air quality is forecast to be in the good or low moderate category and impacts are expected to be minor.

The Bay Area Air Quality Management District is asking residents to not burn wood over the Thanksgiving holiday to help reduce air pollution and protect public health. As we enter the holiday season, gathering around a fireplace may be a tradition for many, but there are serious health impacts associated with wood burning.

The Air District is announcing the availability of $20 million dollars to fund equipment replacement and supportive infrastructure projects for the Proposition 1B Goods Movement Program. Funds will be used to assist owners of diesel-fueled equipment that moves freight in California’s major trade corridors. Applications are due by January 15, 2021.

The Air District is convening a community workgroup to inform development and implementation of our new Particle Fallout Sampling Program for refinery communities. We are looking for people who live or work near the Chevron, Marathon, MRC, Phillips 66, and Valero refineries, or who represent organizations and environmental groups that serve these communities. 

The Air District is issuing an air quality advisory for wildfire smoke for Sunday, August 20. Smoke from numerous fires in northern California is impacting air quality over far northwestern California. Wind patterns are helping to keep smoke away from the Bay Area today through most of the day on Sunday. However, some smoke is predicted to reach the North Bay by late Sunday afternoon, causing air quality to reach low-Moderate on the U.S. EPA’s Air Quality Index. Smoky, hazy skies may be visible in the North Bay and the smell of smoke is possible at higher elevations. Pollutant levels are NOT expected to exceed the national 24-hour health standard and there is no Spare the Air Alert in effect.