Third Spare the Air Day of Summer Declared

Shifting weather patterns mean sunnier skies and poorer air quality today across the Bay Area, triggering the Bay Area Air Quality Management District to declare today a Spare the Air Day, the third such alert this summer.

The first two Spare the Air days occurred last week during a heat spell that flirted with record high temperatures.      

According to the National Weather Service, San Bruno's temperature is expected to be significantly warmer today and Thursday, with temperatures reaching between 80 degrees and 90 degrees all the way to the coast. Today's high in San Bruno is expected to be 84 degrees, with sunny skies and winds out of the west between 17 and 20 mph.  

Temperatures are expected to cool down on Friday and remain cool over the Labor Day weekend.

Officials with the air district are reminding Bay Area residents to take daily action to reduce air pollution across the region over the longterm and not just during the smog alerts.          

"Taking transit, carpooling, walking or biking will help everyone breathe easier," air district executive officer Jack Broadbent said in a statement.          

Clean air choices recommended by the air district include biking to work or around town, working at home or telecommuting, stringing together errands for fewer driving trips, and cooking indoors rather than on outdoor grills or barbecues.          

The air district monitors daily air pollution levels and produces air quality forecasts every day based on an index developed by the U.S.  Environmental Protection Agency.          

When the index indicates unhealthy concentrations of ground-level ozone—commonly known as smog—the air district issues the Spare the Air alerts.           

There is no free transit tomorrow, and there is no wood-burning ban in place. Wood burning bans are common during winter Spare the Air alerts because of the particulate matter contained in wood smoke.           

For more information about the Spare the Air program, visit  www.sparetheair.org.

—Bay City News Service