in the spotlight

California Wants Smoke-free Air in Outdoor Venues

(Cover Story, Breathe Easy Magazine, Fall 2000/Winter 2001)

Now that California are able to enjoy dining, shopping, and working indoors without breathing in deadly tobacco smoke, they are finding the noxious fumes harder and harder to swallow -- even outdoors. The result is, more and more California businesses are voluntarily banning smoking in their outdoor areas.

Thanks to the California Smoke-Free Workplace Act of 1994 (AB 13), which made virtually all indoor workplaces smoke-free including restaurants and bars, Californians have become accustomed to smoke-free air. But now there is more smoke outside -- in eating areas, doorways and other outdoor areas where the health and well-being of everyone nearby is impacted.

"The fact is, 83 percent of Californians don't smoke," says Dian Kiser, director of BREATH, the American Lung Association of the East Bay's statewide smoke-free bars project. "The vast majority of Californians don't want to be subjected to secondhand smoke, so the public is demanding the outdoor areas where people gather be smoke-free."

Businesses and local governments across the state are heeding this demand and enacting voluntary policies and local ordinances that restrict outdoor smoking. This includes health facilities, restaurants and bars with outdoor patios, shopping center, parks, playgrounds, zoos, and fairs.

"It's a courtesy to our customers and it seemed like the right thing to do," says Joey Char, marketing director of the Northridge Fashion Center about his shopping center's smoke-free outdoor policy.

The shopping center posted signs in outdoor eating areas asking customers no to smoke and established a designated outdoor area where smokers can indulge."

"We haven't had any complaints about our policy," Char says. "People who smoke are getting conditioned to having their smoking confined to one area."

That's exactly how Disneyland decided to handle the issue. Smoking is no longer allowed in the theme park, except in three designated areas.

"We simply did it to accommodate our guests," says Ray Gomez, director of public affairs for Disneyland.

Kaiser Decides Smoking Areas Send Wrong Message

Kaiser Permanente went a step farther and decided to make outdoor areas completely smoke-free at all its Southern California medical centers beginning January 1,200, and Northern California Kaiser facilities are expected to follow suit. Smoking is not allowed inside any Kaiser facility, and most went smoke-free even before AB 13 was passed.

"Allowing smoking in specific areas has conveyed a mixed message that it is acceptable to smoke as long as it is somewhere else, "says Gary Wong, MD, physician coordinator for preventive care and smoking cessation at Kiser Permanente in Southern California. "We are unequivocal in our view that smoking is a dangerous habit."

Not only is smoking dangerous, but so is breathing in secondhand smoke, which consists of more than 4, 000 chemicals, many of which are toxic. More than 50,000 people die prematurely each year from prolonged secondhand smoke exposure. Secondhand smoke also contributes to childhood asthma and other illnesses.

Experts used to think that smoking outdoors was safe because the toxic fumes would disperse in the outdoor air. But studies now show that tobacco smoke rises and than descends and hangs in the air where it can be breathed into the lungs.

Organizers of the California State Fair in Sacramento wanted to make sure there were areas where families and individuals could be free from unhealthy tobacco smoke this year. For the first time ever they instituted a smoke-free outdoor policy that designates certain areas as smoke-free zones, which include the petting farm, kiddie carnival, livestock areas and the grandstands.

"We have been getting so many positive comments from the public," says Nancy Fitzpatrick, health educator for the Sacramento County Tobacco Education Program. "People want smoke-free outdoor air."

Customers Request Smoke-Free Entryways

The American Lung Association is also getting calls from people who are tired of walking through clouds of smoke to get inside buildings, according to Kiser. Some local governments such as Palo Alto and many businesses have banned smoking in entryways for that reason. Smoking is also being restricted outside the doorways of some large office buildings because their powerful ventilation systems can pull in smoke every time the door opens.

John Shanahan decided to ban smoking in the outdoor area of the Starbucks coffee shop he manages in Auburn because his customers complained abut the smoke. He says many of them didn't like having to walk past smokers sitting outside near the entryways sipping coffee.

At first he was concerned about losing some customers over the new policy, but when he contacted Alan Hayashi of Placer County's Health and Human Services he found that recent sales data from areas bars shows an increase in business since they went smoke-free, contrary to some merchants' expectations.

"Business owners are finding they not only increase sales, but they also save money on their monthly cleaning and maintenance costs by eliminating tobacco use outside their stores," Hayashi says.

The trend toward smoke-free outdoor venues is indeed contrary to the dire prediction of the tobacco industry when the Smoke-Free Workplace Act went into effect. Industry lobbyists tried to scare business owners, especially bar owners, claiming they would lose business. The fact is, bar and restaurant revenues are up, and so is tourism in California.

"The vast majority of Californians want smoke-free air, so it makes sense they will patronize businesses that don't allow smoking, "Kiser says. "The Smoke-Free Workplace Law has been an overwhelming success, and the fact that the public is clamoring for smoke-free areas outdoor reflects that."

Call 1-800-LUNG-USA to connect automatically to you local American Lung Association office.