Washington County, in an effort to avoid exceeding federal pollution regulations, is moving to limit wood-smoke emissions.
The Board of Commissioners on Tuesday unanimously approved a new ordinance that bans outdoor burning in some areas and allows the county to issue air-quality advisories between Nov. 1 and March 1.
The action was triggered by test results taken a year ago at a monitoring site in Hillsboro that were nearly high enough to slap the entire metro region with a nonattainment status for federal air-quality regulations.
The Hillsboro City Council is expected to formally adopt the same ordinance at its meeting tonight night.
"I have to commend your staff for moving with lightning speed on this," Nina DeConcini, Northwest region administrator for Oregon's Department of Environmental Quality, told the county's Board of Commissioners. "It's a very good outcome."
The ordinance, which takes effect Nov. 6, aims to reduce levels of PM2.5, a type of fine particulate that is caused largely by wood smoke. It allows the county to declare a no-burn "red day" when air quality is approaching unhealthy levels.
Matt Davis, a senior county program coordinator, said red days depend on air quality conditions, which vary year to year. "As an example," he added, "in all of 2014, we would have had just one red day."
A "yellow" day will be declared when air quality is unhealthy for "sensitive groups," who include children, older adults and anyone with existing respiratory conditions such as asthma.
Those in unincorporated Washington County who use fireplaces, wood stoves and wood-stove inserts will not be allowed to burn on red days unless they self-identify as qualifying for an exemption. People eligible for exemptions include low-income residents and those who rely solely on wood for wintertime heat.
The process for developing a "hardship permit" for yard debris burning is still being developed.
The ordinance also bans burning of yard debris for people who live in unincorporated parts of the county and are eligible for yard debris pick-up from their garbage hauler. The law will not apply to agricultural burning or recreational fires such as backyard fire pits.
County residents can sign up to receive important air-quality alerts at www.publicalerts.org. In addition, a link to a map on the county's website shows people if the ordinance will apply to them.
Board Chairman Andy Duyck said he had been prepared to vote against the ordinance out of initial fears that it would be "too onerous."
"But after looking into this, I don't think that's the case," Duyck said. "This is a good step forward toward clean air."
Enforcement of the ordinance will be complaint-driven.
-- Dana Tims
503-294-7647; @DanaTims