PHOENIX — A new crackdown on fine particulate matter pollution could lead to stricter burn ban rules in Maricopa County if the numbers don't change.

Airborne soot, known as PM2.5, can cause serious health problems.

Hazel Chandler has battled asthma all her life. She said that after her Fourth of July a few years ago, she had a severe coughing attack that caused her to fracture her vertebrae.

“I was coughing so hard I couldn't cough up anything,” Chandler said. “Doctors couldn't find the cause. They said it was because of the air pollution that I was having trouble breathing.”

This week, the EPA tightened air pollution standards, lowering the acceptable PM2.5 standard from 12 micrograms per cubic meter to 9 micrograms per cubic meter.

Chandler, who is also an advocate for Mom's Clean Air Force, said the new rules are a win for everyone.

“We owe it to our children to have clean air, clean water and a livable future,” Chandler said.

EPA data It shows Maricopa County met the old standards but not the new ones.

Maricopa County Air Quality Spokesperson Ari Halpert said residential wood burning is the largest source of fine particulate matter pollution in the county.

Halpert said the smoke lingers longer in the winter.

“There's a kind of lid that's built over the valley. This traps air pollutants and they can remain there for days or even weeks, even after you've burned wood or set off fireworks,” Halpert said. Told.

If the county does not meet the stricter pollution standards in the next report at the end of this year, local officials will need to identify high-pollution areas and put together an action plan for the EPA on how to meet the standards by 2032. There is. .

“The Maricopa Air Quality Board may need to implement stricter rules for housing on non-wood burning days,” Halpert said.

Hilda Berganza, climate manager at the Hispanic Access Foundation, said soot pollution disproportionately affects Latinos, who are twice as likely to end up in the hospital with asthma. .

“Latinos primarily work, live and play with many sources that produce these pollutants, soot pollution,” Berganza said. “Soot threatens the health and environment of all communities.”

The EPA estimates that stronger standards would save 4,500 lives nationwide over the next eight years.