Rogue Valley air quality will be poor until Friday

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December 01, 2009

By Anita Burke

Mail Tribune

With patchy fog settled into the Rogue Valley, air quality is expected to suffer in the coming days.

The National Weather Service in Medford issued an air stagnation advisory Monday morning. It was expected to remain in effect until noon on Friday for elevations below 2,500 feet. In the advisory, forecasters said high pressure will linger over the region much of this week, trapping cooler air in the valleys. Light winds and low inversion levels are expected over the Rogue and Illinois valleys. This will result in little mixing of the air and poor ventilation with the potential for pollutants to be trapped near the ground, the advisory stated.

The Department of Environmental Quality reported that air quality in Medford remained moderate throughout the day Monday, with a rising amount of very small particles of pollution.

The department issues air pollution advisories when air pollution levels are expected to be worse than moderate for more than three days.

However, the Web site where such advisories are posted was unavailable late Monday.

In response to the forecast and worsening air quality reported by monitors on Monday, Jackson County restricted woodstove use. In declaring Monday a "yellow day" with air quality expected to near unhealthy levels in the next 24 hours, county air quality officials noted that restrictions are likely to continue through the week.

A yellow day is declared when the levels of very small particles of pollution approach unhealthy levels. When such a designation is issued, use of non-certified wood stoves is not permitted and certified wood stoves should not emit visible smoke.

"It doesn't appear that we will have much change in the weather, so we wanted to let people know," said Jackson Baures, manager of the environmental health division of Jackson County Health and Human Services.

If conditions continue to worsen, the county could move to "red day" restrictions, which ban all woodstoves unless they are the only heat source available.

Baures said authorities determine burn restrictions based on conditions by 6 a.m. each day. Updated information is available on a recording at 776-9000 or online at www.jacksoncounty.org.

Reach reporter Anita Burke at 776-4485, or e-mail aburke@mailtribune.com.

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