If you had a vision of sitting around your Christmas tree bedecked in your flannel robes, opening presents and drinking hot chocolate while a cozy little fire crackled in your hearth, then think again. While it isn’t an official Spare the Air the day, Bay Area Air Quality Management officials are asking residents to please refrain from lighting up.

No, no – I’m not talking about that. I’m talking logs in your fireplace.

The SF Appeal posts that, “This is the time of year [when] many residents choose to burn wood in their fireplaces, but this creates unhealthy air both inside and outside the home,” Bay Area Air Quality Management District Executive Officer Jack Broadbent said in a statement.

“We are asking residents to give the gift of clean air to their families and cut back on wood burning.”

“Wood smoke is the largest source of wintertime air pollution in the Bay Area, according to the air district. It contains harmful pollutants, such as soot and carbon monoxide, and toxins such as dioxin, which has been linked to increased cancer rates in adult”

For the full story, go to the SF Appeal.

• Tag: environment, Fire, holiday, spare the air