Bay Area Air Quality Management District

The Bay Area Air District (BAAD), formerly Bay Area Air Quality Management District or BAAQMD, is a public agency that regulates the stationary sources of air pollution in the nine counties of California's San Francisco Bay Area: Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, southwestern Solano, and southern Sonoma.

The BAAD is governed by a 24-member Board of Directors composed of elected officials from each of the nine Bay Area counties.

[2] The first meeting of the Bay Area Air Pollution Control District (as it was initially known) board of directors was on November 16, 1955, possessing the duty of regulating the sources of stationary air pollution in the San Francisco Bay Area, that is, most sources of air pollution with the exception of automobiles and aircraft.

The Air District's board of directors is made up of 24 locally appointed representatives from 9 Bay Area counties.

[6] BAAD oversees regional data on air pollution and has the authority to declare Spare the Air alerts, when residents should take extra precautions when going outside and may be prohibited from engaging in activities such as burning.

Sources of particulate pollution in Santa Clara County, CA. For comparison, the total tons of PM 2.5 from wood combustion statewide is 39.756 tons per year. So Santa Clara County accounts for 4% of the PM 2.5 from wood burning.