Mountain Views News, Combined Edition Saturday, October 30, 2021

Mountain Views News 
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 30, 2021 SECTION B 

CHECK BEFORE YOU BURN TO IMPROVE AIR 
QUALITY IN THE COOLER MONTHS AHEAD 

Seasonal air pollution prevention 
program runs from Nov. 1, 2021 
through Feb. 28, 2022

 Check Before You Burn.jpgDIAMOND BAR, 
CA – Monday, November 1st marks the start 
of the South Coast Air Quality Management 
District’s (South Coast AQMD) 10th annual 
Check Before You Burn season. From November 
through the end of February, residents are asked 
to check before burning wood in their fireplaces 
to limit emissions of fine particulate matter 
(PM2.5). 

“Smoke from residential fireplaces is a significant 
source of PM2.5 during the winter months in the 
South Coast Air Basin,” said Wayne Nastri, South 
Coast AQMD’s Executive Officer, “Residents can 
do their part to improve air quality by spreading 
awareness and choosing not to burn wood when 
No-Burn Days are announced.” 

A No-Burn day is a 24-hour ban on wood-
burning in residential fireplaces, stoves, 
or outdoor fire pits in the South Coast Air 
Basin. South Coast AQMD forecasters call 
for residential No-Burn Days when PM2.5 is 
expected to reach elevated levels due to air 
emissions and stagnant weather conditions. 
High PM2.5 episodes are most common on calm 
and cool winter days, especially during holiday 
periods. Additional pollution from wood 
burning can turn air quality conditions on No-
Burn days to “unhealthy”. Twenty-five No-Burn 
Days were called last winter. 

Wood-burning can emit more than five tons 
of harmful PM2.5 per day in the South Coast 
Air Basin, more than three times the amount 
of PM2.5 emitted from all power plants in the 
Southland. Short-term exposure to PM2.5 can 
cause throat and eye irritation, aggravate asthma, 
and trigger other respiratory or cardiovascular 
health problems. Prolonged exposure to high 
levels of PM2.5 may increase the risk of strokes, 
heart attacks and cancers. Young children, older 
adults and people with lung or heart diseases 
are especially vulnerable to the health effects of 
PM2.5. 

South Coast AQMD is providing several 
resources to the public to make following No-
Burn Days as convenient as possible: 

E-Mail Notifications: Sign up to receive Air 
Alerts on air quality and be notified when a 
mandatory No-Burn Day has been issued for 

your neighborhood. 

Check Before You Burn Map: Visit the Check 
Before You Burn map on our website for daily 
forecast information. 

Toll-Free Phone Number: Call 866-966-3293 for 
daily Check Before You Burn information. 

Web Resources: Visit South Coast AQMD’s 
Check Before You Burn webpages at www.aqmd.
gov/cbyb for more information. 

Mobile App: Download the South Coast AQMD 
app to check local air quality 

Social Media: Follow South Coast AQMD’s 
social media accounts on Facebook, Twitter and 
Instagram.

 South Coast AQMD’s No-Burn Day alerts do 
not apply to mountain communities above 3,000 
feet in elevation, the Coachella Valley or High 
Desert, homes that rely on wood as a sole source 
of heat, low-income households, and those 
without natural gas service. Gas and other non-
wood burning fireplaces are also exempt. 

About Check Before You Burn 

Check Before You Burn is South Coast AQMD’s 
late fall and early winter program that became 
mandatory on November 1st, 2011, under the 
provisions of South Coast AQMD’s Rule 445 – 
Wood-Burning Devices. The campaign seeks 
to educate residents of the South Coast Air 
Basin about the hazards of wood smoke and 
prohibits burning of firewood in a fireplace, 
stove, or outdoor fire pit on No-Burn Days, 
when Unhealthy air quality is forecast. While 
air quality has improved dramatically in recent 
decades, Southern California still has some of 
the worst air pollution in the nation. 

After decades of progress in reducing PM2.5 
emissions, thanks partially to the last decade of 
the Check Before You Burn program, the South 
Coast Air Basin’s PM2.5 levels now meet the U.S. 
EPA’s 24-hour standard. Public participation 
during No-Burn Days will help the South Coast 
Air Basin continue to meet this air quality 
standard. 

South Coast AQMD is the air pollution control 
agency for major portions of Los Angeles, 
Orange, San Bernardino, and Riverside counties, 
including the Coachella Valley. For news, air 
quality alerts, event updates and more, please 
visit us at www.aqmd.gov, download our award-
winning app, or follow us on Facebook, Twitter 
and Instagram. 

The Chef Knows 
By Peter Dills 
OCTOBER IS PIZZA MONTH 

I Love Pizza ! A few weeks ago I reviewed Zelos in Arcadia and I love Tarintinos too, here are 
some real deal pizza facts. 

As America celebrated National Pizza Month this October, I am writing to suggest a story 
about a survey conducted by TOP Data of America’s love for Pizza. This hot, cheesy dish 
comes in all sizes, and flavors, and has become America’s second favorite food after burgers. 
But Americans have very strong opinions about their favorite Pizza. 

So far this year, Pizza Hut is winning amongst popular pizza chains followed by Papa John’s 
and Domino’s. Here is a full ranking of America’s Favorite Pizza Brands:

 #1: Pizza Hut (31%) 
#2: Papa John’s (22%) 
#3: Domino’s (17%) 
#4: Papa Murphy’s (10%) 
#5: Little Caesar’s (8%) 
#6: Sbarro (3%) 
#7: Cici’s Pizza (2.8%) 
#8: California Pizza Kitchen (2.8%) 
#9: Round Table (2.6%) 
#10: Chuck E. Cheese’s (1%) 


Also, consider these interesting facts about Pizza: 

• Pizza ranks the #2 most popular fast food in America behind burgers. (43% of 
Americans rank pizza as their favorite.) 
• 3% of Americans would rather eat pizza than have a boyfriend or girlfriend. 
• 18% of Americans claim that Pizza is their favorite dish. 
• 2% don't like eating Pizza 
Let me know if you have any questions. Email me at thechefknows@yahoo.com 

PUBLIC HEALTH PREPARES TO ADMINISTER 
COVID-19 VACCINE TO CHILDREN AGES 5 TO 
11 

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health (Public Health) prepares for administering 
COVID-19 vaccines to children 5 to 11 years old once the FDA and CDC recommends and 
approves Pfizer vaccines for children in this age group.

 Since the beginning of the pandemic, there have been more than 200,000 cases among children 
and teens in L.A. County. Over the week ending October 10, 12% of L.A. County cases were in 
children aged 5 to 11. Children in this age group comprise 9% of the county’s population. Since 
March of 2020, L.A. County has seen more than 79,000 cases among children aged 5 to 11, more 
than 37,000 cases in children under 5 and more than 89,000 cases in teens aged 12 to 17. The 
County has seen 632 hospitalizations in children under 5; 376 among children 5 to 11; and 740 
among teens aged 12 to 17. The very low number of pediatric deaths seen in L.A. County – seven 
in total – have occurred during or shortly after case surges. Five of these deaths were in children 
aged 12 to 17, while one was under 5 and one was a child between the ages of 5 and 11. 

In the next few days, the FDA will consider its committee’s advice and make a decision whether 
to issue an emergency use authorization for the Pfizer vaccine for children 5 to 11 years old. Then, 
on November 2 and 3, the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices is expected 
to meet and vote on their recommendation, and shortly thereafter, the CDC Director will make 
a recommendation on how to use the vaccine in children. Once this recommendation is issued, 
vaccine providers nationwide will implement the authorization which could happen as early as 
November 3.

 There will be hundreds of providers in L.A. County ready to provide vaccines to children in 
this age group as soon as the CDC issues its recommendation. The County is positioned to have 
almost 150,000 pediatric doses of the Pfizer vaccine available next week. Parents and caregivers 
can also check with their children’s pediatrician to see if they will be administering COVID 
vaccines once there is final approval from the CDC. 

Last week, there were 500 student cases and about 2,700 student close contacts. Among staff, we 
saw 80 cases and 120 close contacts. These numbers represent a 40% decline in school cases and a 
43% decline in staff cases from the prior week. Given there are more than 1.7 million children and 
staff attending or working at over 3,000 schools countywide, these are strikingly low numbers. 
This amounts to a test positivity of 0.2% among students and staff testing positive, with 0.2% 
identified as close contacts.

 While Public Health anticipates that the ability to vaccinate all school-aged children will provide 
the best protection, the continued efforts of school communities show that masking and other 
preventive measures, like testing, are also powerful tools for supporting safety at schools. 

Unvaccinated people continue to account for most cases and hospitalizations and are still 6 times 
more likely to get infected and 28 times more likely to be hospitalized than vaccinated people.

 While we need to do everything necessary to get those not yet vaccinated their first dose, it is also 
important that many vaccinated people at risk of severe illness from COVID get their booster 
dose as soon as they are eligible for this additional dose. Boosters serve as ‘reminder’ doses that 
refresh your immunity to COVID and are needed since studies have shown that the effectiveness 
of the COVID vaccines diminish a bit over time. 

 People eligible for boosters include adults of any age who received their first Johnson & Johnson 
dose at least two months ago, and people who got the second dose of their Pfizer or Moderna 
vaccines at least six months ago and are 65-plus years old or are over 18 and live in long-term care 
settings, have underlying medical conditions, or work or live in high-risk settings.

 This weekend is Halloween and residents of all ages are looking forward to celebrating the 
holiday. Fortunately, there are lots of safe ways to have a fun time when celebrating Halloween, 
including outdoor costume parties, pumpkin patch visits, outdoor ghost tours, hayrides, and 
trick-or-treating – when done safely. These options are all safer than doing things indoors, like 
haunted house tours, indoor costume parties, and spooky indoor performances. 

When deciding what activities to take part in, it can be helpful to think about what makes an 
activity safe: the more participants who are vaccinated, the less likely an activity will result in 
viral transmission. Additionally, being outside adds safety, and you can further reduce risk 
by masking up when around people outside your household and avoiding crowded situations. 
Handing out individually packaged treats also makes transmission less likely. Taking a common 
sense approach to the holiday can limit risks while maximizing fun for everyone. 

To find a vaccination site near you, make an appointment at vaccination sites, and much more, 
visit: www.VaccinateLACounty.com (English) and www.VacunateLosAngeles.com (Spanish). If 
you don’t have internet access, can’t use a computer, or you’re over 65, you can call 1-833-540-0473 
for help finding an appointment, connecting to free transportation to and from a vaccination site, 
or scheduling a home-visit if you are homebound. 

COVID-19 Sector Protocols, Best Practices, COVID-19 Vaccine Dashboard, COVID-19 
Surveillance Interactive Dashboard, Recovery Dashboard, and additional actions you can take 
to protect yourself, your family and your community are on the Public Health website, www.
publichealth.lacounty.gov. 

COVID 19 ONE YEAR LATER: 

WHERE WE ARE NOW VERSUS (THEN) 

Location Cases 2021 (2020) Deaths % Vaccinations 
LA County 1,489,380 (N/A) 26,598 (N/A) 79.6% 
(Seniors 93.6%) 
Arcadia 3,392 (595) 147 ( 39) 84.4% 
Altadena 4,105 (796) 80 (18) 80.1% 
Bradbury 42 ( 19) 0 ( 0) 67.4% 
Duarte 2,799 (626) 99 (31) 81.4% 
Monrovia 4,036 (848) 83 (42) 79.5% 
Pasadena 13,499 (2,819) 363 (129) 83.7% 
Sierra Madre 651 ( 87) 13 ( 3) 84.7% 
So.Pasadena 1,730 (319) 47 ( 26) 88.7% 

Mountain Views News 80 W Sierra Madre Blvd. No. 327 Sierra Madre, Ca. 91024 Office: 626.355.2737 Fax: 626.609.3285Email: editor@mtnviewsnews.com Website: www.mtnviewsnews.com