FAQ
Agriculture
Odors and Spraying
The California Health & Safety Code exempts odors from agricultural operations from public nuisance regulations.
Agricultural operations include:
- Operations necessary for the growing of crops or the raising of fowl or animals
- Operations that produce, manufacture or handle compost, provided that the odors emanate directly from the compost facility or operations
- Operations that compost green material or animal waste products derived from agricultural operations and that return similar amounts of the compost produced to that same agricultural operation
Yes, the VCAPCD has no enforcement authority over odors associated with the growing and harvesting of industrial hemp. The district will investigate complaints about odors emanating from hemp storage, processing, manufacturing and retail operations to determine whether they constitute a public nuisance violation that must be abated. The district also requires permits for stationary equipment associated with these purposes that emit odorous pollutants as well as air contaminant-abatement devices. Additional information and an FAQ regarding the growing and harvesting of industrial hemp can be found on the California Department of Food and Agriculture’s website.
Contact the Ventura County Agricultural Commissioner's office at 805-388-4222.
No. Pesticide-spraying complaints and requests for information are handled by the Ventura County Agricultural Commissioner's office. They can provide information on what's being sprayed, by whom and for how long.
For more information on pesticides, you can also consult:
- SprayDays Pesticide Map and notification system
- The Department of Pesticide Regulation at 916-445-4300
- The National Pesticide Information Center at 800-858-7378
- The Pesticides page of the EPA website
Open Burning
State law allows agricultural burning to be reasonably regulated but not prohibited. District Rule 56 regulates all open fires, including agricultural burning. The requirements of Rule 56 minimize public exposure to smoke and ash fallout while allowing farmers to burn.
- When farmers want to burn agricultural materials, typically orchard trees, they must first contact their local fire station.
- Fire Department staff inspect the materials to be burned to ensure that they are dry and free of trash, construction debris, fertilizer, etc., and will not cause a fire risk.
- The Fire Department then issues a Burn Permit to the farmer and sends a copy to the VCAPCD.
- The farmer must wait until VCAPCD has declared a Burn Day for the region before starting a burn. Ventura County is split into six geographical burn regions.
The VCAPCD meteorologists, in consultation with the Fire Department and California Air Resources Board, decide when to declare a burn day. Agricultural burning may be allowed in the morning, the afternoon or the morning and afternoon. The district issues Agricultural Burn Status notifications online, by email and on a voicemail message line at 805-303-3888.
For more information on the agricultural burn process, visit our Agricultural Burning webpage or contact the Monitoring Division at 805-303-3889.
Check the Air Quality Forecast & Agricultural Burn Status page, sign up for daily email notifications or call the recorded message line at 805-303-3888.
Asbestos
The district regulates demolition and renovation operations that include the removal of asbestos-containing materials from buildings and residences except for projects at single-unit dwellings performed by the owner or occupant. See the district's Asbestos Notification webpage for more information.
CFC's & FREON
No. The Environmental Protection Agency regulates freon and chlorofluorocarbon refrigerant. Refrigerators and motor vehicle air conditioners use freon & CFC refrigerants for cooling. For general information about stratospheric ozone depletion, visit the EPA's Ozone Layer Protection webpage.
Complaints
General Information
Fill out a complaint form and send to complaints@vcapcd.org, call the district's complaint line at 805-303-3700, or call the Compliance Division at 805-303-3708 from 7 a.m. to 4:30 pm. Monday through Friday. See the district's Air Quality Complaints webpage for more information.
For air quality complaints related to smoking vehicles, visit the California Air Resources Board Environmental Complaints page.
Smoke and Odors
The district has no direct jurisdiction over residential fireplaces. However, the district may send a letter to the resident to make them aware of the problem and request their cooperation. The letter also informs them of the potential fines and penalties associated with creating a public nuisance.
The California State Health and Safety Code provides an exemption to the opacity limits for "open outdoor fires used only for cooking of food for human beings or for recreational purposes." However, cooking odors are not exempt from causing a public nuisance. If a sufficient number of complaints are reported to the district and an inspector witnesses the problem, the district can issue a Notice of Violation.
A district inspector can often resolve these complaints by making the source aware of the problem and letting them know a complaint has been registered. A restaurant can change its operating practices, improve maintenance of its cooking equipment or install odor control equipment. Restaurants are not exempt from public nuisance regulations. If a sufficient number of complaints are reported to the district and an inspector witnesses the problem, a Notice of Violation can be issued.
Dust
The district responds to dust complaints and, if necessary, will inform the source that the problem needs to be abated. In the case of a construction site, the district will request that the dust be kept to a minimum. Ways to reduce dust include using water trucks, restricting earth-moving activities to times when the wind is low and altering work practices.
An inspector will visit a permitted business to determine whether it is complying with permit conditions and district rules. If a company is operating in violation of its permit or district rules or causing a public nuisance, the district can issue a Notice of Violation.
Generators
Permits for this emergency use are only required for diesel-powered generators, not for those that run on natural gas, gasoline or propane. Also, air pollution permits are not required for generators that are used for a residence with four or fewer families, those with less than 50 brake horsepower or portable rentals.
Consider safety and noise when it comes to emergency engine options. Diesel exhaust contains toxic air contaminants and has been linked to lung cancer and other adverse health effects. It is because of these concerns that there are permitting and registration requirements in Ventura County.
Solar-powered generators with battery storage are the cleanest and safest alternative. Natural gas or propane generators result in less pollution than diesel or gasoline. For assistance finding options, the California Air Resources Board offers online tools for residential and commercial uses.
If you do use a diesel backup generator, never operate it indoors because of the exhaust's harmful effects on people and animals. Be mindful of the sensitivity of neighbors to exhaust and noise from generators. And, if you use a generator during a wildfire, maintain a clean room with a HEPA air purifier for your family.
Indoor Air Quality
General Information
No. The district has no jurisdiction over indoor air quality issues.
Carbon monoxide is a by-product of combustion and can be found inside buildings. For information, visit the EPA webpage on Carbon Monoxide's Impact on Indoor Air Quality.
No. You can consult the following agencies with questions on radon:
- Ventura County's Environmental Health Division at 805-654-2813
- California Air Resources Board at 916-323-1504
- The California Department of Public Health Indoor Radon Program at 800-745-7236
- National Safety Council
- EPA's Radon webpage
For more information on radon and to obtain a copy of radon-mitigation companies in your area, contact the free National Radon Fix-It Program at 800-644-6999.
Additional information can be found on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and American Lung Association websites.
Mold
Mold is an indoor air quality problem and is not regulated by the district. To determine if your home or office has a mold problem you will need to hire a properly trained hygienist. Search the internet for "Building and Home Inspection Services" and "Laboratories - Testing."
For more information pertaining to indoor air quality and mold, please visit the EPA, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and American Lung Association websites.
State law requires anyone who sells, transfers or rents residential, commercial or industrial property or any public entity that owns, leases or operates a building and knows or has reasonable cause to believe that mold is present affecting the unit or building and exceeding the permissible exposure limits to mold must provide a written disclosure to potential buyers, prospective tenants, renters, landlords or occupants.
The VCAPCD is not involved in the implementation of this law. Nor does the district have the capability to determine or test for the presence of mold. However, in the interest of providing the public with as much information as possible on this subject, the district has compiled the following
Lead
No. The district has no jurisdiction over lead paint issues.
- If you have a concern about lead paint removal in your workplace, contact Cal/OSHA at 818-901-5403.
- For information on lead paint removal, refer to EPA's site.
- For more information, you can call the National Lead Information Center at 800-424-5323.
Mobile Sources
You can report a smoking vehicle to the California Air Resources Board by filling out this online form. You will need the following information about the vehicle:
- license number
- make
- location and time you saw it
Visit the California Air Resources Board Environmental Complaints webpage to submit complaints online. The district does not have a specific rule prohibiting emissions from mobile sources. State regulations limit the amount of time commercial diesel trucks and buses can idle.
Motor vehicles are responsible for more than 50% of the air pollution in Ventura County. The primary pollutants stemming from motor vehicles are nitrogen oxides and reactive organic compounds. When these come in contact with sunlight, ozone is formed, and ozone is our most serious air pollution problem here.
New motorcycles may be lighter and more fuel efficient than passenger cars, but they are more polluting. The average new motorcycle emits significantly more hydrocarbons than the average new car. Motorcycles are allowed on some high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) carpool lanes because they take up limited road space, not because of their air quality efficiency.
The California Air Resources Board (CARB) has developed a regulatory proposal to further reduce emissions from on-road motorcycles by applying more stringent emissions standards and progressively increasing the number of zero-emission motorcycles sold each year, starting in model year 2028. For more information, visit the CARB website.
When employers conduct their Employee Commute Surveys for the Rule 211 Transportation Outreach Program, motorcycle trips are counted as drive-alone trips. The survey is based on occupancy only. A motorcycle trip could possibly be a two-person carpool. This survey method provides an estimate of average vehicle occupancy for each of the county’s large employers. Other factors, such as longer commutes and older vehicles, can produce more pollution but are not considered for this survey. Our intention is to decrease the number of vehicles on our roads to reduce air pollution and congestion, which creates additional air pollution. The size of the vehicle, or its engine, is not a factor.
Ozone
It can be both, depending on its location. Ozone in the stratosphere, which extends from 4 to12 miles above the Earth's surface to around 31 miles, protects our world from the sun’s harmful ultraviolet rays. But when ozone is in the troposphere, which begins at the Earth's surface and stretches to the stratosphere, it is a harmful pollutant that can cause health problems. Ozone is always the same toxic compound. Its effect simply depends on where it is in the atmosphere.
Ground-level ozone is the primary ingredient of smog. It’s a colorless, highly reactive gas produced by a complicated web of chemical reactions between nitrogen oxides and reactive hydrocarbons and sunlight.
These ozone precursors come from varied sources including gasoline vapors, chemical solvents, fuel combustion and household products such as hairspray, glass and oven cleaners, and deodorants. Maximum ozone concentrations occur in the afternoon, when sunlight is the strongest.