[Source: Cal Matters] The global coronavirus pandemic has inadvertently achieved what state officials have sought to do for decades: Californians have parked their cars. Freeways and highways are clear. And the constant burn of fossil fuels has been markedly diminished. The statewide stay-at-home order has brought about drastic reductions in air pollution and planet-warming emissions, Read More…
Tag: air pollution
L.A.-Long Beach ports approve truck fee too low to clean smog, groups charge
[Source: Los Angeles Times] Los Angeles and Long Beach officials voted Monday to impose a modest fee on shipping containers moving through the nation’s largest port complex, in a first step toward helping truckers replace their diesel vehicles with lower-polluting models. The decision by harbor commissioners, which followed hours of public testimony at a joint Read More…
E.P.A. updates plan to limit science used in environmental rules
[Source: The New York Times] The Trump administration has formally revised a proposal that would significantly restrict the type of research that can be used to draft environmental and public health regulations, a measure that experts say amounts to one of the government’s most far-reaching restrictions on science. The revisions made public Tuesday evening mean Read More…
Coronavirus: NASA images show China pollution clear amid slowdown
[Source: BBC News] Satellite images have shown a dramatic decline in pollution levels over China, which is “at least partly” due to an economic slowdown prompted by the coronavirus, US space agency NASA says. NASA maps show falling levels of nitrogen dioxide this year. It comes amid record declines in China’s factory activity as manufacturers Read More…
Tackling air pollution may accidentally trigger serious health issues
[Source: NewScientist] Cities tackling one major air pollutant risk inadvertently making things worse by fuelling the growth of another, potentially more harmful type of pollution. Many urban areas around the world are in breach of World Health Organization guidelines on PM2.5, particulate matter with a maximum diameter of 2.5 micrometres. Vehicles are a common source of Read More…
California weighs controversial rule to tackle truck tailpipe pollution
[Source: CalMatters] California’s clean air enforcers want major truck manufacturers to sell zero-emission vehicles in the state — but the agency’s proposal faces criticism from environmentalists and truck makers alike. Noemí Bueno’s daughter was barely 14 months old when she started struggling to breathe. Bueno, a San Bernardino resident who works as a crossing guard Read More…
The war on Southern California smog is slipping. Fixing it is a $14-billion problem
[Source: Source: Los Angeles Times] The war on smog has been called one of America’s greatest environmental successes. Decades of emissions-cutting regulations under a bipartisan law — the 1970 Clean Air Act — have eased the choking pollution that once shrouded U.S. cities. Cleaner air has saved lives and strengthened the lungs of Los Angeles Read More…
Battle over science roils EPA
[Source: The Hill] Environmental Protection Agency is battling its own board of science advisers over its controversial plan to dismiss certain types of scientific research from consideration when issuing rules. A meeting this week between the agency and some of the nation’s top scientists highlighted the growing rift between the EPA and the scientific community, Read More…
Southern California’s most toxic polluters will pay more under air board’s fee hike
[Source: Los Angeles Times] Southern California air quality officials will dramatically raise fees on toxic polluters in an effort to make oil refineries, manufacturers and other industries pay a greater share of the cost of monitoring and regulating their most health-threatening emissions. The South Coast Air Quality Management District’s governing board voted 8-4 Friday to Read More…