Nov 24, 2022

An orange sun sets in a hazy sky near the Bay Bridge on Wednesday, August 18, 2021, in Alameda, Calif.

Yalonda M.James/The Chronicle 2021

High levels of wood smoke pollution were expected to make air quality unhealthy Friday, leading regional air quality officials to ban most fires.

The Spare the Air Alert prohibits using fireplaces, wood stoves, pellet stoves, outdoor fire pits, chimneys or other wood-burning devices. The ban doesn’t apply to households with no other heat source.

Wood smoke accounts for about one-third of fine particulate matter pollution in the Bay Are during winter months, according to the Bay Area Air Quality Management District.

For more information, visit https://www.sparetheair.org/

Julie Johnson (she/her) is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: julie.johnson@sfchronicle.com

Julie Johnson covers the changing climate, sea level rise and strategies to stem California’s wildfire crisis. Before joining The Chronicle, she spent 11 years as a staff writer at the Santa Rosa Press Democrat, where she had a leading role on the breaking news team awarded the 2018 Pulitzer for coverage of the 2017 Wine Country fires. Julie has covered murderous pot deals, police corruption and marijuana’s rocky path from a black-market trade to a legitimate industry.

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Homelessness in the Bay Area has become such a problem people are being urged to give their spare rooms over to the homeless.

Some charities have urged local families – who are sick of seeing the homeless crisis on their doorsteps – to do something about it personally by taking unhoused people into their own homes and spare rooms – and some schemes have little to no compensation.

Christi Carpenter, executive director of East Bay nonprofit Safe Time, which places homeless families and college students in spare bedrooms for one-to-six months, told Mercury News: ‘This is something that someone can do when they just feel that despair of ‘ oh my gosh, I just can’t stand seeing these poor people on the streets near my home.’

Since 2017, the group has made more than 60 placements. There are an estimated 30,000 homeless in the five-county Bay Area – which are comprised of the East Bay, North Bay, South Bay, Peninsula and the city of San Francisco regions.

The mayor of the Richmond, located in the East Bay county of Contra Costa about 20 miles from downtown San Francisco, has set up a program to match homeless people with local landlords who have empty apartments.

Funded by private donations, it will pay the landlords a year’s rent up front to encourage them to forgo the usual credit, employment and background checks for tenants.

‘That’s the carrot,’ Mayor Tom Butt told DailyMail.com, adding that they were paid the market rate.

‘But we have had some landlords come forward and offer it lower, as they want to participate.’

Asked whether people expressed concern about the potential dangers of welcoming homeless people into their homes or apartments, he insisted that people care more about the plight of unhoused people and the homeless camps.

‘They are more concerned with the homeless camps,’ he said. ‘People want to see solutions, and want to be part of the solution.’

He also claims he has not faced any concerns about the tenants from those housing them, because as the apartments were lower end in the first place – so they would always attract renters with less secure and affluent circumstances.

Richmond Mayor Tom Butt (right) insists people in his city located 20 miles from San Francisco were more concerned about helping the homeless than the potential dangers of taking in a homeless person – but Richie Greenberg (left) slammed the scheme as ‘creepy’

Homeless people are seen on the streets of San Francisco on January 23, as the mayor declares a state of emergency and a crop of new schemes to provide housing are promoted

A tent encampment is seen in the Tenderloin section of San Francisco on January 23

Drone footage shows lines of people sitting outside a shelter in San Francisco on January 18

Zach Stein and his wife housed a young woman for three months in 2020 through Safe Time, putting her up in their Bay Area home in the city of Albany.

‘In some ways, it was really weird,’ he said.

But they intend to do it again, once their newborn is older – explaining that they were able to buy their house because they inherited money, and they want to share that good luck with those less fortunate.

‘Being in a position to do that, especially in a place like the Bay Area, it felt really important to us to find ways to open that up.’

Another group, the Homecoming Project, houses former prisoners – paying homeowners in Alameda and Contra Costa counties $30 a day to house someone in a spare bedroom for six months.

Each former inmate is matched with a case manager to help them find a job and save money for a permanent home. Sex offenders aren’t eligible.

‘When we first started talking about this project people thought we were crazy. You’re going to put somebody from prison into somebody’s house?’ said Aishatu Yusuf, vice president of innovation programs at Impact Justice, which runs the project.

But the nonprofit has housed nearly 70 people so far, none of whom have gone back to jail or prison.

And on Thursday, the San Francisco department of homelessness will hold a seminar to encourage landlords to rent out their homes for the homeless, with the local government picking up the tab.

The schemes are just the latest attempt to solve San Francisco’s homeless problem, which in December forced Mayor London Breed to declare a state of emergency. Over 8,000 people are currently believed to be homeless in the city – up from 5,600 a decade ago.

However, not everyone is happy with the solution.

Richie Greenberg, the only Republican to challenge Breed and her fellow Democrats in the 2018 special election, told DailyMail.com the schemes were a publicity stunt and downright ‘creepy.’

‘The sheer number of people, and the reasons behind them being homeless, means it won’t have an impact,’ he said.

Greenberg, a small business advisor, said that because the majority of the homeless were mentally ill or drug addicts, they would not be assisted by the programs.

What was needed, he said, was more facilities for drug rehabilitation and a way of caring for the mentally ill so they did not harm themselves or others.

A drug user lights up on the streets of San Francisco on January 22

A woman injects herself with drugs into broad daylight in the streets of San Francisco on January 22

Drug use is rampant among the homeless in San Francisco, and the addicts will not be helped by the new schemes

He said the idea of ​​individuals opening up their doors for the common good was not new – especially in San Francisco – but it was not a long-term, scalable solution.

‘This is not a new idea – it’s been floated for many years,’ he said. ‘Particularly in San Francisco – it goes back to freedom, and the summer of love, and hippies and communal houses, with strangers crashing on your couch.

‘It’s not an unheard of concept. But we’re not talking about flower children. Now it gets a bit absurd.’

Greenberg continued: ‘A very high percentage of San Francisco’s homeless people are homeless because they are addicted to drugs or mentally ill. So the number of candidates is going to be quite limited.

‘It won’t be the mentally ill or drug addicts, who account for around 60-70 percent.’

He said the proposal was ‘unrealistic’. ‘Secondly, it’s creepy,’ he said.

‘If you are looking for a room mate, that’s one thing – you can check references, and talk to people at their previous places. But these are not that kind of people. A lot are down on their luck.’

Back in Richmond, Mayor Butt, 77, joined forces with the Rotary Club to match unhoused people with local landlords – and has already placed a family of six, including four children, who were living in an RV encampment.

‘I got disgusted at throwing all this money at the problem without any thought of the end result,’ Butt told DailyMail.com.

‘I had access to some funding and thought I can’t solve the whole problem. But I can move people out of RVs and tents into apartments.

‘So I partnered with the local Rotary Club, and they pivoted to prioritizing people in housing, rather than showers for camps.’

Butt said he had to ‘provide some kind of incentive to landlords,’ and so he is paying the year’s rent up-front.

Richmond’s homeless issue is comparatively small, with estimates of between 300 and 1,000 homeless people. Butt believes it is nearer to the lower end of the scale.

‘The big picture is that there are 160,000 homeless people in California, and unless we do something different, there will still be 160,000 ten years from now.

‘If you take those 160,000 and multiply that by the average cost of a one-bedroom apartment, the cost is $1 billion.

‘California’s state budget is $300 billion a year. So for less than one percent of the annual state budget, you have provided housing for all.’

Asked what he would say to those who argue his plan would encourage homeless to flock to California from other states, in search of free housing, he said it was a risk they could ‘work out’ if it happened.

‘None of the things that are happening now are working,’ he said.

‘None have an end game. They are just throwing money at it.

‘Last year, in Richmond, we spent $1.5 million just servicing homeless camps – with that money, we could have bought 77 one-bed or studio apartments.

‘We’re the richest country in the world, and California brags about being the fifth largest economy.

‘But if we can’t sort this out, we’re lame.’

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SAN FRANCISCO (BCN) – Air District officials extended a Spare the Air Alert through Monday, urging Bay Area residents not to drive on the holiday weekend to reduce smog buildup.

The air alarm for smog is paired with an air quality warning for smoke, which will also be extended until Monday, the Bay Area Air Quality Management District said.

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A combination of high temperatures, vehicle exhaust and forest fire smoke is expected to increase smog or ozone build-up.

“Restricting driving this holiday weekend can help reduce the build-up of harmful smog pollution,” said Veronica Eady, Air District senior deputy executive officer.

When a spare-the-air alarm goes off, outdoor exercise should only be done in the early hours of the morning, when ozone levels are lower, air district officials advise.

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If temperatures allow, residents should stay indoors with the windows and doors closed until the smoke subsides. If it’s too hot inside, people should go to an air cooling center or other building that provides filtered air.

The Air District also recommends that people affected by flue gas air conditioners and car ventilation systems recirculate to prevent outside air from getting inside.

Air quality measurements are available at baaqmd.gov/highs.

To find out when a spare-the-air alarm is in effect, residents can sign up for SMS notifications by sending the word “START” to 817-57, or sign up for email AirAlerts at www.sparetheair Register .org, 1 (800) HELP AIR, download the Spare the Air app or connect to Spare the Air on Facebook or Twitter.

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© Copyright 2021 CBS Broadcasting Inc. and Bay City News Service. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) – Changing winds pulled a large cloud of smoke from the raging forest fires in Caldor and Monument over the San Francisco Bay Area early Friday, throwing a haze over the sunrise and setting off a spare-the-air alarm.

As of Friday morning, the Monument Fire, which burned in Trinity County, was on 157,557 acres and was 20 percent contained. The Caldor Fire, meanwhile, continued to rage near Lake Tahoe along Highway 50 and had grown to 143,951 acres.

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Southwest winds have fueled the flames near Kyburz and Strawberry and pushed a thick layer of smoke over the Lake Tahoe Basin.

According to AirNow.gov, a partnership of state, state and local aviation authorities, residents and visitors to South Lake Tahoe and Tahoe City have endured some of the worst air pollution in the country for several days.

Just south of Tahoe, Rick Nelson and his wife Diane had planned to hold a weekend wedding at Fallen Leaf Lake, where his daughter and her fiancé had met. However, the smoke caused most of the community to leave. The sun was an eerie blood orange and the swimmers and boats in the lake were obscured by mist on Tuesday.

In the end, the Nelsons spent two days arranging the relocation of the wedding from Glacier Lake several hours southwest to the San Francisco Bay Area.

“Everyone is trying to escape the smoke. And I think it’s going to be a reality for us, unfortunately, ”said Diane Nelson. “I just think the smoke and fires got bigger, hotter and faster.”

Now these winches are turning. The National Weather Service said dry north winds are developing that will turn the cloud west and over the Bay Area.

The Bay Area Air Quality Management District issued an air quality recommendation for Friday and Saturday on Thursday. Late on Friday morning, the advisory was upgraded to a spare-the-air alarm for both days.

Air quality is predicted in the Air Quality Index as “unhealthy for sensitive groups” in most of the Bay Area, with spots “unhealthy” at higher altitudes.

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Burning wood, logs, or other solid fuels both indoors and outdoors is prohibited during the spare-the-air warnings.

“With wildfires continuing to burn in California, conditions are changing very quickly,” said Jack Broadbent, executive officer of the Air District. “Wildfire smoke is unpredictable. When forest fires are active, it is important to remain vigilant and check the air quality to protect your health from smoke. “

Residents can see the latest air quality readings at baaqmd.gov/highs or the AirNow Fire and Smoke Map at fire.airnow.gov. The independently operated air monitoring website PurpleAir.com also provides localized air quality measurements.

To find out when a spare-the-air alert is in effect, residents can register for text alerts by sending the word “START” to 817-57, register for email AirAlerts at sparetheat.org, 1 Call (800) HELP-AIR, download the Spare the Air app or connect with Spare the Air on Facebook or Twitter.

Temperatures will also rise in the next 72 hours. The weather service has issued a heat warning for the counties of Mendocino and Lake for Friday.

Locally in the Bay Area, three-digit projections were planned for many inland areas, including the communities east of the Caldecott Tunnel.

Rising temperatures and low humidity will continue to suck moisture from the bushes and trees in the drought-ravaged region, increasing the risk of fire.

“The warming and drying trend will quickly dry out the fine fuels in the next 1-3 days, with the values ​​of the energy release component expected to slowly increase again towards the 97th percentile,” said the weather service. “The hills stay warm and dry without the humidity recovering over the weekend.”

The energy release component is used to measure the likelihood that an ember could ignite a fire.

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© Copyright 2021 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All rights reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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