Stuart Johnson: Controlled burning bad for air quality, potential wildfire

Letters to the Editor Letter-to-the-editor | Nov 24, 2019

North Lake Tahoe controlled burning is dangerous both from an air quality perspective and the potential to become a major wildfire.

I woke up on a recent morning at Cedar Flat to this Tahoe City air quality report: “Tahoe City: AQI (US) 169 Unhealthy.” The recommendation is to stay indoors with an air purifier today.

Seriously? In Tahoe?

Beijing China with consistently poor air quality comes in at AQI 104 today. I do not think that controlled burning right now in the fire season during an extended dry period makes much sense. Especially in these dry conditions. Last month one of these controlled burns south of Lake Tahoe expanded into a major wildfire that took a month to put out.

Perhaps clearing these forest areas with selective logging operations before they become giant piles of brush and dead trees without burning them might have been a better way?

Stuart Johnson

Carnelian Bay

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