Air Quality

The Prince George Air Improvement Roundtable (PGAIR) is coordinated by the Fraser Basin Council and includes members from the City of Prince George, Ministry of Environment (MOE), Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure (MOTI), Northern Health, the Regional District of Fraser-Fort George (RDFFG), UNBC, Husky Energy, Canfor Pulp, Carrier Lumber, and members of the public. The “multi-stakeholder, community-based non-profit society” is “committed to researching, monitoring, recommending, and implementing air quality improvements, and promoting public awareness and education in the Prince George air shed, with the goal of improving the air quality in the community.”

Under PGAIR there is also the Research Group and Monitoring Working Group. The City of Prince George and its representatives have been fundamental in the creation of PGAIR and its continued achievements. City Council continues to support PGAIR with $70,000 of funding annually, plus an additional $50,000 for air quality monitoring and research. A member of City Staff sits on PGAIR’s Board of Directors, operational committee and Monitoring Working Group.

• No person shall use a wood burning appliance at any time during an air quality advisory unless it is their sole source of heat.
• No person shall operate a wood burning appliance in such a manner to significantly contribute to the cause of injury or damage to human health, plant or animal life or so as to unreasonably interfere with the enjoyment of life or property.
• No person shall install a hydronic heater (outdoor wood boiler) on any property in the City of Prince George.
• No person shall install a wood burning appliance in or about any premise unless it meets the particulate emission requirements of the Canadian standard or the US standard.
• No person shall cause or allow any substance to be burned in any wood burning appliance other than seasoned (minimum 6 months) wood fuel. Garbage or other noxious material is not allowed.

Open burning is not allowed in the City of Prince George (excluding recreational fires) at any time on any property within municipal boundaries. This includes the burning of grass, leaves, tree material and land clearing debris.

The definition of open burning is the combustion in the open air of yard and garden waste, land clearing debris, or any other material, including burning of any of these materials in a container (including burn barrels). This does not include the burning of gas, propane or charcoal in a barbeque or hibachi for the purpose of cooking food.

• A recreational fire must be contained in a permanent outdoor fireplace or fire pit not larger than 60cm in diameter that is designed and constructed to confine the fire.
• No person shall have a recreational fire if an air quality advisory has been issued. If the fire was started prior to the issuance of the air quality advisory, that person shall take all reasonable steps to extinguish the fire within an hour of the advisory being issued.
• No person shall burn yard and garden waste, garbage or noxious materials. Only seasoned wood (dried a minimum of 6 months) may be burned.
• No person shall maintain a recreational fire in such a manner to significantly contribute to the cause of injury or damage to human health, plant or animal life or so as to unreasonably interfere with the enjoyment of life or property.
• All persons maintaining a recreational fire shall be competent to do so, continuously control and supervise the fire, and possess at the site extinguishing equipment appropriate for the size of fire.
• The recreational fire shall not be allowed to come within 3 meters of any property line, fence, standing timber, brush, or building.

• No person shall sweep or maintain any highway or off street parking, loading or storage areas except with the use of equipment, using fugitive dust control procedures or dust suppressing liquids (prior to and during sweeping in amounts sufficient to minimize the generation of dust).
• No person shall undertake any sweeping or maintenance of highway or off-street parking, loading or storage areas at any time when an air quality advisory is in effect unless approved by an Authorized Person on the basis that dust suppression measures satisfactory to the Authorized Person will be taken to control fugitive dust.
• All off-street parking, loading and storage areas, sand and gravel pits, demolition sites, construction sites and highways must be maintained so the dust does not escape in such a manner as to cause injury or interfere with the enjoyment of life or property.

• Reduce vehicle usage. Vehicle traffic is one of the biggest contributors to air pollution, and every trip that your car doesn’t make is a reduction in emissions.
• Try taking the bus, walking or riding your bike for short trips.
• Plan ahead and combine errands. Park and walk instead of driving to each location.
• Don’t idle. Turnoff your car and go inside, rather than sitting in the drive-thru. It’s often quicker to go inside rather than waiting in the drive-thru.
• Carpool. Hitch a ride with nearby neighbours who work close to you. Drive into town with your partner, rather than taking two separate vehicles.
• Avoid burning wood and opt for non-wood burning appliances. Smoke from wood stoves, fireplaces and backyard fires can really affect neighbourhood air quality. Wood smoke is particularly hard on children and those that are elderly or have respiratory ailments.
• Swap out your old wood stove for a more efficient appliance through the Woodstove Exchange Program.
• If you must use a wood stove and/or fireplace, ensure that you are using dry, seasoned firewood and that your wood stove/fireplace is cleaned regularly and meets EPA and CSA regulations.
• Don’t burn wet yard materials. All yard waste cannot be burned under the Clean Air Bylaw.
• Clean your BBQ regularly.
• Practice Energy Efficiency at Home. The typical residential home is a big energy waster, due to poor heating methods and air leaks.
• Properly insulate your home. Install vapour barriers, caulk or weather strip cracks and holes, and doors and windows.
• Close heating vents and doors to rooms that are not being used, and replace old windows with more energy efficient ones.
• Use a fan rather than an air conditioner in the summer, and put on a sweater rather than turning up the heat in the winter.
• Don’t churn up dust. Dust advisories are common in the early spring months. Take special care to mitigate dust.
• Don’t drive on the shoulder of the road, as this churns up winter traction materials that are waiting to be swept by City crews.
• Use water or other dust suppressants when sweeping your driveway and/or patio.
• Drive slowly on gravel roads.
• Limit use of recreational vehicles (e.g. dirt bikes, ATVs, UTVs) on gravel pathways during long spells of dry weather.