Trash burning outlawed in most of California

To burn or not to burn trash will no longer be the question come Thursday.

That's when a California state law goes into effect that effectively prohibits the burning of household trash in piles or barrels.

But what constitutes trash has become a confusing manner, according to Marcella McTaggart, pollution control officer for El Dorado County. On a limited basis, people may burn waste from trees, vines, brush, leaves, lawn clippings and dry plants with proper burn permits obtained by local fire agencies. Trash such as cardboard, newspaper, plastic, glass, food containers and food products are prohibited from being burned.

Pile burning of limbs and lawn clippings will be allowed, but burning them in barrels is prohibited, McTaggart said.

"Clippings should be separated from paper and cardboard, which cannot be burned anywhere in El Dorado County," McTaggart said.

That matter can still be burned with a permit in Alpine County, said Ellen Hardebeck, air pollution control officer for the Great Basin Unified Air Pollution Control District.

The reason is because Alpine falls into the category of having a low population density, which meets statewide criteria, Hardebeck said.

Paper or cardboard may be burned in barrels along with dry vegetation in limited areas of Alpine County by people with ZIP codes 95666 and 95646. There are no exceptions, however, when it comes to burning plastics and household garbage.

The law was created to cut down on the amount of cancer-causing pollutants, including dioxin, that are released into the atmosphere when burned. Household waste such as plastics food containers contain dioxin and other chemicals that have been linked to cancer.

The smoke produced by burn barrels breaks down the immune system and causes health problems such as asthma, according to the office of Environmental Health and Hazard Assessment.

In 2002, about 800,000 households throughout the state were allowed to burn some form of household waste in barrels. That smoke was the largest source of dioxins traced in California, producing more than municipal and waste incinerators.

Alternatives to burning including curbside pickup, self-hauling to a transfer station or landfill, and recyclng plastics, glass, newspapers and cardboard.

There are ways to reduce the volume of waster materials generated, including buying products with less packaging, reusing materials, and recycling. Household waste can also be compacted, and organic and paper waste can be composted.