SJVAPCD reissues health advisory due to smoke from wildfires

The San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District reissued a health advisory for Valley residents due to continuing smoke from California wildfires. The cautionary notice will remain in place until all of the fires are put out.

Photo Credit: NOAA (https://satellitemaps.nesdis.noaa.gov/arcgis/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=4da21c3c398946f293e0436fb926702c)

The District said that smoke from the SQF Complex Fire in Tulare County was entering the Valley through the mountains of Tulare and Kern Counties and combining with smoke from other wildfires to impact San Joaquin, Stanislaus, Merced, Madera, and Fresno Counties as well.

Particulate (PM) pollution from these wildfires can trigger asthma attacks, aggravate chronic bronchitis, and increase the risk of strokes and heart attacks. Those experiencing poor air quality should stay indoors. The District has also advised that the the simple cloth and paper masks used to prevent the transmission of COVID19 virus particles by exhalation may not be sufficient to prevent the inhalation of PM particles.

Monterey Bay Air Resources District issues health advisory due to "hazardous" air quality

 As wildfires continue to rage throughout California, yet another air pollution control district has warned its residents to stay indoors and reduce activity levels.

Yesterday the Monterey Bay Air Resources District announced that its air monitoring devices at many locations in Monterey, San Benito, and Santa Cruz counties have reached hazardous levels. This poses a risk to everyone and especially to those with underlying conditions such as heart disease, asthma, COPD, the elderly, children, and others.

Photo Credit: Monterey Bay Air Resources District website

The District also warns that simple paper or dust masks,scarves, and bandanas will not provide protection against the very small particles known as PM2.5. N-95 or P-100 respirators may help, but, the best solution is to stay indoors if possible.

SCAQMD issues health advisory for Los Angeles metro area due to wildfire smoke

The severe health effects posed by California's spate of wildfires is not limited to the Central Valley. The South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD), which encompasses Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside,and San Bernardino Counties, issued its own health advisory today due to elevated levels of ozone and PM2.5.

Photo credit: SCAQMD

The SCAQMD extended its Special Air Quality Advisory to Saturday, August 22, 2020, due to smoke from the Lake and Ranch2 fires. The agency advised those in the impacted areas to remain indoors and avoid physical activities.

RAAN Air Quality update for Bakersfield area

Well, it looked like things were starting to get better, smoke-wise, for the Bakersfield area today. After a pre-dawn peak of 148 µg/m³, PM2.5 levels dropped nearly in half by 11:30 AM, only to reverse course and climb to 140 µg/m³ by 4 pm.

Photo Credit: SJVAPCD RAAN data, August 21, 2020

The concentration of PM2.5 particles exceeds the SJVAPCD's Level 5 limits. Ozone levels also have climbed drastically, reaching a peak of 105 ppb and exceeding Level 4 limits.

Stay inside if you can. Wear a good mask if you can't. Stay safe!

SJVAPCD issues health caution alert through the weekend due to smoky skies in the San Joaquin Valley

As most of you are painfully aware, the skies in many parts of California are filled with smoke from the numerous wildfires throughout the state. 

Photo Credit: CIRA/NOAA 

Smoke from those fires has severely impacted ambient air quality. As a result, the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District has re-issued a health caution due to the unhealthy levels of large particulate matter (PM) and PM2.5 (particles less than 2.5 microns in diameter).

The health caution will remain in effect until the fires are extinguished.

The District anticipates the air quality to be unhealthy throughout the weekend and has warned residents to stay indoors with all windows closed as a result. They also caution that the common cloth and paper masks worn by many to help reduce the transmission of the novel coronavirus may not be adequate protection from wildfire smoke.

Please exercise caution. Stay safe. Stay indoors.

Smoke in the San Joaquin Valley still a problem

This will be just a short post. Here is a screenshot of RAAN data from the SJVAPCD for Bakersfield today.

Notice the more than tripling of PM2.5 data in the span of just a couple of hours around 11 AM to 1 PM today. It now exceeds Level 5.

Please stay inside if you can. Be sure to mask up if you are outside.

Smoke in the San Joaquin Valley - one more reason to stay indoors

If you live just about anywhere in California's San Joaquin Valley, you may have noticed that the sky is gray, the mountains are nowhere to be seen, and the acrid smell of  a burning "something" is in the air.

Wildfires throughout the state are currently impacting the Valley's air quality. As a result,  San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District (SJVAPCD) air quality data is being reported as unhealthy for sensitive groups (RAAN Level 3).

Additionally, if you can smell smoke and see ash, the air may be even more unhealthy as the monitoring equipment doesn't pick up larger particles. SJVAPCD advises that if you see an area covered in ash, then you should assume the air quality is even more unhealthy (RAAN Level 4 or 5).

Currently, the SJVAPCD says that the following fires are impacting the Valley:

• The River Fire, south of Salinas in Monterey County
• SCU Lightning Complex, multiple locations throughout the NorthCoast Range
• The Lake Fire, southeast of Lebec in Los Angeles County
• The Hills Fire, west of Avenal in western Fresno County

Accordingly, everyone should take the appropriate precautions.  

UPDATE. 8/19/20 @ 6:52 PM PDT - Here is the latest date from SJVAPCD's RAAN network for Bakersfield:

ExxonMobil signs agreement with GCE Holdings for renewable diesel from repurposed Bakersfield refinery

ExxonMobil today announced an agreement with Global Clean Energy (GCE) Holdings to purchase renewable diesel fuel for a period of 5 years.

Photo Credit: GCE Holdings website (Fair Use)

The fuel will be produced from GCE's Bakersfield refinery, a traditional fossil fuel refinery which is currently being modified to produce renewable fuels from waste and agricultural products. Production is expected to begin in 2022.

ExxonMobil said it will purchase 2.5 million barrels per year for 5 years as part of its plans to reduce its global greenhouse gas footprint. The diesel will be sold throughout California and possibly other out of state and country markets.