Air District staff are proposing amendments to two rules: Regulation 5: Open Burning and Regulation 6: Particulate Matter, Rule 3: Woodburning Devices.

Background

Air District staff consider woodsmoke as an important source to evaluate as it represents over 10 percent of the fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) emissions in the region on an annual basis with an even greater impact during the winter. The Air District has also committed to explore woodsmoke mitigation options through concerns identified in Assembly Bill (AB) 617 communities: West Oakland Community Action Plan (WOCAP) Further Study Measure #5 and Richmond-North Richmond-San Pablo Path to Clean Air (PTCA) Public Health Action (H) 2.5.

In 2024, the Air District released a White Paper detailing our current understanding of woodsmoke emissions in the Bay Area:

• Woodsmoke Fact Sheet(232 Kb PDF, 1 pg, posted 2025/2/13)( English | Tagalog | tiếng Việt | Español )
• Woodsmoke White Paper(5 Mb PDF, 1 pg, posted 2024/11/5)

The White Paper provides extensive information on wood burning in the Bay Area, the current state of the regulatory landscape for wood-burning devices, and a discussion of potential recommendations to further minimize woodsmoke emissions and exposures. Given the significance of the source and the known health impacts, staff recommended developing policies to further minimize woodsmoke emissions and exposures, focused on wood burning for the purposes of ambiance or aesthetics (not as a primary source of heat). This included consideration of the following potential amendments to Regulation 6, Rule 3: Wood-Burning Devices:

• Strengthening the Air District’s burn curtailment (i.e. periodic wood burning ban) program; and
• Accelerating the disabling and turnover of dirtier wood-burning devices.

The White Paper was open for comments for 75 days and closed on January 20, 2025. All comments received during this period were taken into consideration for the currently planned rule amendments.

The Air District held two virtual public workshops to provide the public with an opportunity to learn about, discuss, and comment on the planned amendments to Regulation 5 and Rule 6-3 in June 2025. Recordings and materials from the workshops are available in the ‘Hearings, Workshops and Other Events’ table below.

Public Hearing on Proposed Amendments

The Air District is issuing a Public Hearing Notice and accepting comments on proposed amendments to Regulation 5: Open Burning (Regulation 5) and Regulation 6: Particulate Matter, Rule 3: Wood-Burning Devices (Rule 6-3). The Air District Board of Directors will conduct a public hearing to consider adoption of the proposed amendments on October 1, 2025. Links and other information on how to join will be provided in the 'Hearings, Workshops and Other Events' table below.

• Regulation 5
  The proposed amendments to Regulation 5 waive operation fees for all persons conducting prescribed burns, expanding the current exemption that applies only to public agencies. This change is intended to reduce administrative barriers and improve operational flexibility for nonprofit organizations and private landowners who may be positioned to carry out prescribed burns in areas where public agency capacity is limited. The proposed expansion of the exemption supports statewide efforts to expand beneficial fire practices for wildfire prevention and land stewardship.

• Rule 6-3
  Under Rule 6-3, wood-burning curtailment is issued when the Air District forecasts that 24-hour average PM_2.5 concentrations will exceed a designated threshold, currently set at 35 micrograms per cubic meter (μg/m³). The proposed amendments would lower this 24-hour forecasted PM_2.5 threshold to 25 µg/m3, triggering Mandatory Burn Bans at lower pollution levels. This change is intended to reduce short-term peaks in PM_2.5 exposure from woodsmoke and contribute long-term exposure reductions as well. Multiple scientific and regulatory bodies have cited evidence supporting the need for more health-protective PM_2.5 standards.

To view or download the documents, please click on the links below or visit the “Documents” section at the bottom of this web page.

• Executive Summary – Proposed Amendments to Woodsmoke Rules – Regulation 6, Rule 3 and Regulation 5(173 Kb PDF, 4 pgs, posted 2025/7/14)
• Staff Report – Proposed Amendments to Woodsmoke Rules – Regulation 6, Rule 3 and Regulation 5(1 Mb PDF, 46 pgs, posted 2025/7/14)
• Appendix A – Proposed Amendments to Rule 6-3(219 Kb PDF, 9 pgs, posted 2025/7/14)
• Appendix B – Proposed Amendments to Regulation 5(213 Kb PDF, 15 pgs, posted 2025/7/14)
• Appendix C – Socioeconomic Impact Analysis for Rule 6-3(846 Kb PDF, 24 pgs, posted 2025/7/14)
• Appendix D – Socioeconomic Impact Analysis for Regulation 5(358 Kb PDF, 8 pgs, posted 2025/7/14)
• Notice of Public Hearing and Request for Comments – Proposed Amendments to Rule 6-3 and Regulation 5(228 Kb PDF, 2 pgs, posted 2025/7/14)( English | Tagalog | tiếng Việt | Español )

Written and/or email comments on the proposed amendments to Regulation 5 and Rule 6-3 and Staff Report are requested by August 13, 2025, at 5:00 PM. Comments may be submitted to:

To receive information on updates and events associated with further woodsmoke rule development activities, please sign up for the Air District's Woodsmoke and Woodburning Appliances Rules and Regulations Email List at the bottom of this page.

Hearings, Workshops and Other Events

Throughout the rule development process, we provide information on upcoming and past workshops, hearings, and other events.

Documents

Supporting materials, such as staff reports, regulatory language, and other technical documents related to rule development, are posted throughout the development process.

Comments

The Air District provides opportunities for the public to submit comments throughout the development process, and posts comments received during the open public comment periods.