News
News Releases & Air Alerts
APCD Provides 270 Air Purifiers in the Cuyama Valley
Santa Barbara County Air Pollution Control District (APCD) staff distributed 270 air purifiers in the Cuyama Valley on Friday, a one-day event under APCD’s Clean Air Rooms Program. The school district received 35 air purifiers — one for each classroom and administrative building — and 235 air purifiers were given to residents, the post office, the library, the Sheriff’s Department substation, and the fire station. The air purifiers were distributed on a first-come, first-served basis, limited to one per household, and proof of address was required. Air purifiers help keep indoor air clean — creating a “clean air room” — when wildfire smoke is affecting air quality.
Plug in to 2026 National Drive Electric Month
Santa Barbara County Air Pollution Control District (APCD), Central Coast Clean Cities Coalition (C5), Electric Ride 805, and regional partners invite community members to join free in‑person and virtual events during National Drive Electric Month (September 11 – October 12).
Air Quality Watch for Santa Barbara County
The Santa Barbara County Air Pollution Control District and County of Santa Barbara Health Department issued an Air Quality Watch for Santa Barbara County to be in effect until conditions improve. Smoke from the Timber and Plaskett Fires burning in Monterey County has reached Santa Barbara County; currently, ground-level conditions are Good-to-Moderate countywide, with smoke levels more elevated in the northern part of our county.
Prescribed Burn Information
Prescribed Burn at UCSB Lagoon Scheduled for Today
WHAT: Approximately one acre of grassland and Coastal Sage/Bluff Scrub will be burned.
WHEN: September 14, depending on conditions. As conditions permit, the burn is scheduled to begin in the late morning or early afternoon and conclude by 4 p.m. on a permissive burn day; the actual burn is likely to last less than an hour.
WHERE: UCSB Lagoon near Campus Point and Coal Oil Point.
Prescribed Burn at UCSB Lagoon Scheduled for Mid-September
The Santa Barbara County Fire Department, in conjunction with UCSB’s Cheadle Center for Biodiversity and Ecological Restoration, has tentatively scheduled a two-day Prescribed Burn at UCSB Lagoon near Campus Point and Coal Oil Point with a burn window in mid- September. This burn is part of ongoing management effort to control non-native grasses and establish native bluff scrub vegetation. Building on successful past burns, this treatment will be conducted on a day within the burn window with the least amount of fog in order to generate enough heat to reduce the viability of the non-native seed bank, and on a day with the best conditions for dispersion.
VSFB Watt Training Burns to Occur Over the Next Week
WHAT: Vandenberg Space Force Base (VSFB) Fire Department will be conducting prescribed burns of approximately 5-10 acres per day of grassland and coastal sage scrub.
WHEN: June 5-12. These burns will occur over multiple days. Burning operations may or may not occur on consecutive days, depending on conditions.
Public Notices
Notice of Public Review and Request for Comments
The Santa Barbara County Air Pollution Control District (District) has issued a draft federal Part 70 permit PTO 14708 – R1 to the City of Lompoc for the Lompoc Sanitary Landfill facility, which is part of the Lompoc Sanitary Landfill stationary source, located near the south end of Avalon Street in Lompoc.
Notice of Public Review and Comment Opportunity
Geosyntec Consultants, Inc. has applied to the Santa Barbara County Air Pollution Control District (District) for a permit to install a soil vapor extraction system at 155 South Turnpike Road in Santa Barbara. The project site is located within 1,000 feet of San Marcos High School, El Camino School, and Hollister Elementary School.
Notice of Public Review and Comment Opportunity
GBFUIN, Inc. has applied to the Santa Barbara County Air Pollution Control District (District) for a permit to increase annual gasoline throughput from 2,400,000 gallons to 3,000,000 gallons at a gas station located at 1100 E. Ocean Avenue in Lompoc. The project site is within 1,000 feet of the property boundary of Hapgood Elementary School, located at 324 S. A Street in Lompoc.
