The Puget Sound Clean Air Agency called for a burn ban for Greater Pierce County and Snohomish County, which continues indefinitely. Phil Swartzendruber, an Air Quality scientist at Puget Sound Clean Air Agency, said there are two types of burn bans. One is for fire safety and is more common during the summer months. The other is connected to air quality concerns and is more common during the winter months. This November burn ban is due to air quality. Swartzendruber said this stems from a combination of the weather and people. First, people are starting to burn wood because of how cold it is. Burning wood "is actually causing a rapid buildup of smoke and fine particles in the wintertime and raising them to levels that violate the federal health standards,” said Swartzendruber. In addition, he said there are certain weather conditions that are a recipe for worsening air quality. “These cold, calm and clear conditions - there’s very little wind and the air doesn’t mix up very high - so all of that pollution stays very low, even just 20 or 30 feet above the ground and doesn’t move,” said Swartzendruber. He said it’s been three years since an Air Quality Burn Ban was implemented, due, in part, to these conditions not being present in recent years. READ THE FULL STORY: https://www.king5.com/article/news/local/everett/burn-ban-snohomish-pierce-counties/281-255b10c3-17d7-40b8-a2d4-6247dd438a61