Global Clean Air

New interactive data story highlights air pollution and health impacts in the South Bronx

By Mindi DePaola / Published: December 20, 2023
South Bronx Unite's new interactive data story clearly maps the concentration of warehouses and other truck-attracting facilities in the South Bronx and other parts of New York City. It also maps the associated disproportionate health burden borne by the community, including higher childhood asthma rates.

South Bronx Unite’s new interactive data story clearly maps the concentration of warehouses and other truck-attracting facilities in the South Bronx and throughout New York City. It also maps some of the health impacts associated with the air pollution emitted by the facilities and large diesel trucks that often come with them.

What’s new: EDF partner, South Bronx Unite, has just launched an interactive data visualization that’s mapping what residents of the South Bronx have long experienced—that air pollution from industrial facilities is taking a disproportionate toll on the health of residents in their community and across New York City. For the last year, a multi-disciplinary team at EDF has been collaborating with South Bronx Unite to improve local air quality monitoring and create engaging tools that tell the stories found in monitoring data.

Why it matters: Every city relies on large industrial facilities, and New York City is no exception. Think waste transfer stations, power plants, printing facilities and warehouses that support in-time delivery services. Many of these facilities are major air polluters in the neighborhoods where they are placed. Beyond the facilities themselves, the heavy-duty vehicles that they attract, such as large delivery trucks, are among the leading polluters on the road.

What we know: For decades, South Bronx residents have faced disproportionately high air pollution and asthma rates. Leveraging recent EDF research that describes air pollution’s burden of childhood asthma, the new webpage now backs up residents’ lived experiences with even more quantitative information, presented as a narrated interactive visualization that helps tell the story.

How the work has been used: Presenting this additional data in an easy-to-understand format will help advance tangible policy change that can improve health outcomes in the South Bronx and beyond. South Bronx Unite leaders recently participated in NYC Climate Week events where they used this tool to tell the story of their air quality monitoring efforts and what they will mean for public health.

Moving forward: South Bronx Unite will continue to use the air quality and health insights from this new tool to advance their advocacy goals. They have begun working closely with the EDF New York State team to build consensus with local coalitions.

Real policy actions are already taking shape in New York that could help alleviate the health impacts of warehouses and other polluting facilities in the South Bronx and across the state. In November 2023, state lawmakers introduced the Clean Deliveries Act, which would require the state to review the negative impacts of so-called “mega-warehouses” and establish emissions reduction plans.

South Bronx Unite brings together neighborhood residents, community organizations, academic institutions and allies to improve and protect the social, environmental and economic future of the South Bronx. Learn more about their work and how you can support it at southbronxunite.org.

Posted in Academic, Climate, Community Organizer, Concerned Citizen, Environmental Justice, Government Official/Policymaker, Homepage, Monitoring, New York City, Partners, Public Health/Environmental Official, Science, USA / Comments are closed

EDF China unveils locally-tailored Air Tracker in Jinan

By EDF Web Team / Published: December 11, 2023
EDF China holds meeting to launch localized AirTracker tool in Jinan in November, 2023

EDF China holds meeting to launch localized Air Tracker tool in Jinan in November, 2023. Photo courtesy of EDF China.

What’s new: EDF China recently unveiled its localized Air Tracker tool at a meeting with government officials and policy and academic experts in Jinan. The tool will help these and other policymakers to track and mitigate air pollution in support of China’s carbon peaking and carbon neutrality goals.

What is Air Tracker?: Air Tracker is an innovative air quality monitoring tool developed by EDF, the University of Utah and the CREATE Lab at Carnegie Mellon University that uses real-time, trusted scientific models to help users see where air pollution is coming from. The tool is currently operational in five U.S. cities, with plans to expand globally.

To adapt Air Tracker’s technology for use in China, EDF China collaborated with the Chinese Academy of Environmental Planning and Tsinghua University on joint research projects in Jinan, a city with more than 9 million residents. Jinan was an ideal location to deploy the technology in part because it has an urgent need to further reduce air pollution levels. Concentrations of fine particles (PM2.5), sometimes called soot, stood at 40 μg/m3 in Jinan in 2022. These exceed China’s national standards (35 μg/m3), which are 7 times weaker than the World Health Organization’s recommended limits (5 μg/m3).

What we know: Tsinghua University developed a monitoring approach that utilizes meteorological, emission and observational data from monitoring stations, which complements Air Tracker. By incorporating both approaches, the new, localized Air Tracker tool will pinpoint pollution sources and inform targeted control

Why it matters: This new tool allows users to quantify the contributions of different emission sources through near-real-time data collection. This will allow government officials to develop targeted control measures to reduce air pollution and carbon emissions.

Both China and the United States have committed to jointly addressing the climate crisis. The newly localized Air Tracker tool is an example of the ways the two countries plan to promote policies and technologies that control greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution.

Next steps: EDF China and our partners—including the Tsinghua University, Chinese Academy of Environmental Planning and Jinan Environmental Research Academy—will test the localized Air Tracker this winter in Jinan. The team also will seek input from key government partners who were present at the launch, including the Ministry of Ecology and Environment of China (MEE) and the Jinan Municipal Ecology and Economic Bureau.

The lessons learned from this pilot phase will provide valuable insights to other cities in the Global South who may also benefit from Air Tracker or similar technologies. The learnings will likely also inform future expansions of the tool to other cities in China and around the world.

Learn more about EDF’s Air Tracker tool at globalcleanair.org/AirTracker.

Posted in Academic, China, Climate, Energy, Environmental Justice, Government Official/Policymaker, Homepage, Monitoring, Public Health/Environmental Official, Science / Comments are closed

Efforts to fight air pollution are severely underfunded. Leaders in Latin America and across the Global South are calling for change at COP28 and beyond

By Derek Schwabe / Published: November 30, 2023
The Forum of Ministers of the Environment of Latin America and the Caribbean convenes in Panama City, Panama in October 2023. The Forum plays a crucial role in shaping environmental policies and achieving consensus across the region.

The Forum of Ministers of the Environment of Latin America and the Caribbean convenes in Panama City, Panama in October 2023. The Forum plays a crucial role in shaping and building consensus around environmental policies.

What’s new: The ministers of environment representing 33 countries in the Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) region recently issued a joint declaration calling out the yawning gap between the funds needed to address the global air pollution crisis and the funds currently committed. The declaration is noteworthy because it has set a tone for influential global dialogues happening this week at COP28 and in February at the 6th session of the United Nations Environmental Assembly (UNEA-6).

Why it matters: 99% of the world’s population now breathes unhealthy air. As a result, more than 8 million people die prematurely each year due to fossil fuel-driven air pollution, making it the 4th leading cause of death worldwide. Despite the staggering human costs, currently only 1% of development funding goes to programs aimed at improving air quality each year.

The LAC region is one of the most underfunded when it comes to air quality. Expanding investments in air quality would help the region reach its climate goals and improve health outcomes. It could also set the stage for scaling investments in air quality in underfunded regions across the Global South.

The details: In the declaration, ministers stressed the need for regional and global coordination. They also called upon the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP)—which is responsible for leading implementation—to provide technical support to countries as they enact key policies, like air quality standards and management plans. Specific actions requested of UNEP include:

  • Leading the implementation of the Regional Action Plan on Air Quality and mobilizing the resources needed to support it;
  • Helping countries strengthen legal frameworks to prevent and reduce air pollution by adopting air quality standards and developing plans for crucial sectors;
  • Encouraging countries to act boldly to abate emissions of short-lived climate pollutants;
  • Promoting best practices, infrastructure and sustainable transport initiatives that can ensure a just transition in hot spots, especially large cities.

What they’re saying: Senior Policy Director of Global Clean Air, Sergio Sanchez, spoke of the declaration: “This declaration marks a bold step toward realizing the vision of a thriving LAC region. When we act collectively to cut air pollution, we act to meet the climate crisis, strengthen our economy and dramatically improve health. We will continue to support the regional and global partnerships needed to mobilize this action at COP 28, UNEA-6 and beyond.”

What EDF is doing: In September 2022, EDF and UNEP launched a joint initiative to help LAC countries develop funding-ready clean air projects. Since then, EDF has continued to grow that effort by:

  • Helping UNEP implement the Regional Action Plan to coordinate strategic investments.
  • Convening two major international workshops to reactivate the region’s Intergovernmental Network on Air Pollution. These workshops have fostered new partnerships and high-impact projects backed by participant governments and global partners, such as the Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC) and the OECD.
  • Hosting a side event at the 2023 LAC Climate Week, focused on mobilizing greater financing for air quality in the region. The event debuted a new video that lays out how such actions could transform population health and power economic growth.
  • Serving on the Climate and Clean Air Coalition task force, which is dedicated to designing the Clean Air Flagship, set to launch at COP28. The purpose of the Flagship is to enhance funding and cooperation efforts globally.

What’s next: As leaders from all sectors gather at COP28, LAC leaders have an opportunity to take their call to the global stage. It’s a chance to join with governments from across world—especially other neglected regions—to demand that the air pollution crisis receives the funding it requires.

Leaders will have a second opportunity at UNEA-6 to secure greater investments in air quality by having the global assembly ratify regional calls for broader support. If ratified, UNEP would be tasked with implementing the declaration of the global assembly. Ratification would give UNEP some additional budget—and a stronger mandate to take to donor governments and agencies.

Learn more about our clean air partnership with UNEP and LAC countries at globalcleanair.org/LAC.

Posted in Climate, Concerned Citizen, Energy, Environmental Justice, Government Official/Policymaker, Homepage, Mexico, Partners, Public Health/Environmental Official / Comments are closed

New science to help policymakers address unequal impacts of air pollution

By Maria Harris / Published: November 13, 2023
NO2 pollution in the United States and the extent to which tools capture differences in exposure by marginalized groups

This graphic maps nitrogen dioxide pollution levels in the United States as quantified by satellite, monitor and model data sources (left) and shows how these datasets differ in estimating inequities in pollution exposure (right)

What’s new: EDF and partners have just published new research that explores how novel data sources, including satellites and computer models, can help improve our ability to map, identify, track and reduce disparities in air pollution exposure and health impacts.

What we know: Air pollution in the United States has declined dramatically over the last several decades, thanks to strong, protective clean air policies. And yet, unjust disparities in pollution exposure remain, with people of color in the United States burdened by higher levels of health-harming pollution than white people, regardless of income. One root cause of this pollution inequity is historic disinvestment in communities of color through racist policies like redlining, along with discriminatory siting of highways and polluting industrial facilities.

Levels of nitrogen dioxide (NO2), a key health-harming pollutant emitted by trucks, cars and industrial facilities, can vary substantially at fine spatial scales – even from one end of a block to the other. For example, an EDF study in West Oakland, California found that NO2 levels could be up to four times higher in areas of the neighborhood close to truck traffic and other pollution sources.

Research and policy decision-making has historically relied on NO2 measurements from government regulatory monitors—complex and expensive stationary instruments that must meet rigorous standards. Data from these monitors helps the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) identify areas where air pollution levels exceed Clean Air Act health standards and guides actions to reduce pollution. However, given how much NO2 concentrations can vary across small distances, it is unlikely we will ever deploy enough of these monitors to enable a full understanding of exposure disparities that exist between population groups.

What this research adds: New datasets, including satellite data, statistical models and photochemical models, can estimate NO2 at a relatively high spatial resolution and across the entire United States. Our new research compared estimates of NO2 levels and racial/ethnic exposure disparities using these novel data sources to estimates based on traditional data from the US EPA regulatory monitoring network.

The new NO2 data sources showed that Black, Hispanic, Asian and multiracial Americans experienced average NO2 levels that were 15-50% higher than those experienced by the US population in 2019. Meanwhile, the non-Hispanic white population experienced levels that were 5-15% lower. In contrast, data from the regulatory monitors indicated more moderate patterns of racial/ethnic disparities, suggesting that the regulatory network does not currently provide a full understanding of inequity in pollution exposure.

NO2
dataset*

How it can contribute to better policies and enforcement
Regulatory Monitors • Monitoring attainment of National Ambient Air Quality Standards
• Ground-truthing satellite and model datasets
Satellites • Guiding placement of future regulatory monitors or measurement campaigns
• Identifying potential pollution
Photochemical and statistical models • Tracking and reporting trends over time in pollution disparities
• Estimating NO2-attributable disease burdens and associated disparities
• Quantifying source sector contributions to ambient NO2 (Photochemical models)

Moving forward: This research demonstrates that policymakers and regulators will need to incorporate new sources of data beyond the existing regulatory monitoring network to accurately understand which policies are or could be most effective in helping close the racial-ethnic gap in air pollution exposure.

The table above outlines how satellite and modeling data can complement existing sources. Satellite data can be leveraged to identify pollution hotspots currently not measured by regulatory monitors, which could guide placement of new government monitors and investigations of potential emissions sources. Air pollution models can enable tracking and reporting of pollution disparity trends over time   and make it easier to quantify health impacts.

Integrating these new data sources into regulatory decision-making would improve the coverage of the regulatory monitoring network, enable a more complete understanding of inequities in air pollution exposure and inform policies aimed at mitigating this environmental injustice.

Maria Harris in a Senior Scientist at Environmental Defense Fund. Learn more about her work here. 

*Table adapted from Table 1 in Kerr et al. 2023

Posted in Academic, Environmental Justice, Government Official/Policymaker, Homepage, Monitoring, Public Health/Environmental Official, Science, USA / Comments are closed

EDF scientists in China present new learnings on low-cost sensors and emphasize links between air pollution and climate change

By Sirianna Blanck / Published: November 1, 2023

Yangyang Xu presents on the bi-directional relationship between air pollution and global climate patterns.

What’s new: EDF scientists, Hugh Li and Yangyang Xu, presented as keynote speakers at the 10th International Conference on Air Benefit and Cost and Attainment Assessment (ABaCAS) in Qingdao, China this September. At ABaCAS, they shared insights on how to optimize cost-effective sensor technology and on the importance of approaching climate change and air pollution as interconnected problems. 

Why it matters: ABaCAS is a leading global forum for sharing the latest technology for monitoring and mitigating air pollution. By presenting there, Li and Xu were able to draw from EDF’s global experience in novel air quality monitoring to help other researchers and policymakers track air pollution more efficiently and target sources more effectively. 

Presentation on air quality sensors: Low-cost particulate matter sensors have revolutionized air quality monitoring in recent years. Li presented research on ways to calibrate these sensors to overcome some of the challenges associated with using them, such as less accurate data. In particular, he explained how post-calibration strategies can improve the accuracy of the original data generated by the sensors.  

Next steps: In his presentation, Li encouraged using low-cost sensors in diverse environments and near various sources to better understand their performance. He cited EDF’s past monitoring work in Oakland, CA and London, UK as examples of this practice.  

Presentation on climate change and air quality: Yangyang Xu’s presentation described the two-way feedback loop that exists between global warming and air pollution, especially how aerosols worsen air pollution even as their potency is boosted by rising temperatures. Xu emphasized how both heat extremes and air pollution exacerbate each other, undercutting human health and crop yields. However, he also underscored how action to current warming rates is likely to result in better air quality. 

Go deeper: Read more about Xu’s research here. 

Posted in China / Comments are closed

EDF and Brazilian leaders lay the groundwork for a national air quality plan

By Sirianna Blanck / Published: October 24, 2023

What’s new: This summer, Global Clean Air’s Senior Policy Director, Sergio Sanchez, and Program Manager, Melanie Scruggs, with consultant Armando Retama, visited Brazil to help leaders in the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change start laying the groundwork for a national strategy on air quality. Such a strategy would deliver significant population health benefits and strengthen Brazil’s existing climate action plan, as well as serve as a model for other countries. 

What we know: It is not currently possible to create a comprehensive understanding of air quality in Brazil, due to uneven monitoring from state to state. The new Ministry of Environment and Climate Change is dedicated to solving this problem. Broadly speaking, the main sources of air pollution in Brazil are understood to include transportation and local industries. Other sources vary by region but can include dust storms during the dry season, agricultural burning and wildfires.  

Next steps: Brazil’s leaders understand that they can’t combat air pollution until they know where it’s coming from. That’s why a critical next step will likely be to collect high-quality air quality data nationally. Making this happen will include such actions as:  

  • Creating long-term, sustainable funding mechanisms for air quality management (AQM). 
  • Updating current air quality monitoring guidelines. 
  • Deploying and upgrading monitoring networks across the country. 
  • Strengthening collaborations between all levels of government as well as global partners. 

Photo: Rebeca Hoefler/MMA

Opportunities: With the help of a national strategy and better air quality data, Brazil has the chance to make big strides toward cleaner air. Other actions that national leaders are considering include: 

  • Adding air quality to its plans for sustainable development and for health and transportation, which are currently being updated. 
  • Launching a national campaign to generate long-term public support for improving air quality. 
  • Deploying federal grants to help states, cities and civil society invest in better monitoring. 
  • Securing funding from global donors. 
  • Replicating aspects of São Paulo’s successful AQM program in other regions. 

Moving forward: Brazil and EDF aim to co-design a National Air Quality Strategy by March of 2024, incorporating novel monitoring and policy approaches used in EDF’s past work around the world. The national strategy will include guidelines for AQM and monitoring plans for priority “air basins,” including the metropolitan region in the Federal District of Brasilia.

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Methane and Health: Crucial Intersections between Climate Mitigation and Public Health

By EDF Web Team / Published: September 21, 2023

New report identifies near-term actions to reduce methane emissions and benefit human health 

Methane and Health Dialogue Series ReportEditor’s note: This post was adapted from an article originally published on RESOLVE’s Insights blog. Access the original article here.  

EDF is pleased to announce the release of the report “Methane and Health Dialogue Series” during New York Climate Week. The report, prepared by our partners at RESOLVE, summarizes key findings and recommendations from the recent Methane and Health Dialogue Series, convened by EDF and facilitated by RESOLVE. The virtual dialogue series brought together experts on agriculture, oil and gas, public health and waste management from around the world to identify near-term opportunities to reduce methane emissions and improve human health. 

Methane is a highly potent greenhouse gas with 80 times the global warming potential of CO2 over a 20-year period. However, it is also short-lived in Earth’s atmosphere, degrading in a matter of decades rather than centuries. This means that rapidly reducing methane emissions is one of the most promising ways to rapidly mitigate climate change.  

The vast majority of methane emissions come from three sectors: Agriculture, oil and gas and waste. Today, emissions from all three sectors are rising and their rise is projected to continue under business-as-usual scenarios – but in all three sectors, mitigation strategies exist that, if implemented today, could rapidly reduce planetary methane to levels that would slow global warming and help keep a 1.5° C goal in sight.  

While awareness of methane’s climate mitigation potential is growing, the public health benefits of cutting methane are less well understood. For example, methane is often emitted by the oil and gas industry as part of normal operations. Some oil producers use flares to burn methane gas, a process which also releases co-pollutants such as Nitrogen Oxides (NOx) and fine particle pollution (PM2.5) that are linked to asthma, cardiovascular disease and premature death. Taking action to address flaring can reduce methane emissions as well as the associated negative health impacts in nearby communities.  

We recently kicked off these efforts at an exciting event co-hosted by The Global Climate & Health Alliance at New York Climate Week, “Methane Matters: Exploring the Health Impacts of Methane Mitigation,” which explored opportunities to reduce methane emissions and improve health, building on the results of the Dialogue Series. We look forward to supporting future initiatives that broaden our understanding of climate change, human health and the strategies that can create a healthier future for our communities and the planet. 

Access the report here: https://www.edf.org/methane-and-health-dialogues 

FIGURE 1: A chart showing the potential pathways to improve human health through productivity improvements in the livestock industry, which would decrease the methane intensity of the sector.
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Dr. Sanjeev Goyal Presents “Local Air Management Plan” (LAMP), a New Methodology for Hyperlocal Air Pollution Monitoring at India Clean Air Summit

By EDF Web Team / Published: August 27, 2023

Dr. Sanjeev Goyal, Head and Chief Scientist at the National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI) presented a promising new methodology to support Indian cities combating air pollution through ward-level action at the prestigious 2023 India Clean Air Summit (ICAS) in Bengaluru.  ICAS is the preeminent annual air quality event in India. It brings together governments, scientists, policy makers, NGOs, academia and students working on clean air in India and is hosted by the Centre for Study of Science Technology and Policy (CSTEP).

Dr. Sanjay Goyal presents at the India Clean Air Summit

Dr. Sanjay Goyal presents at the India Clean Air Summit

Dr. Goyal presented key results on the pilot study conducted by NEERI around Sirifort Auditorium in New Delhi in winter of 2023 during the session “Technology for Change”. Using a combination of stationary and mobile air quality sensors, the study team mapped the hyperlocal variations in the concentration of PM2.5 and NO2 within a small area covering less than 4 square kilometers.

The pilot study underscored the need for a “Local Air Management Plan” (LAMP) for each hotspot within the city using data from regulatory grade monitors, sensors, micro emission inventory and dispersion modelling. It showed how different emission sources like waste burning, domestic activities, roadside eateries and vehicles lead to diurnal variations in pollutant concentrations, which are further altered by weather patterns.

In his talk, Dr. Goyal emphasized the need to support authorities use hyperlocal monitoring to help non-attainment cities prioritize actions in hotspots support achievement of the targets of India’s National Clean Air Program. The pilot was supported by Environmental Defense Fund, which has pioneered hyperlocal monitoring cities across the world, including London, UK, Houston and Oakland in the US, and Cangzhou, China. EDF’s Air Quality team in India was actively involved in the pilot project, headlined by

ICAS 2023 is centered around the theme of “Mission LiFE” – India’s most ambitious policy yet to address climate change and the need to prioritise clean air for sustainable development. Hosted in collaboration with Indian Aerosol Science and Technology Association (IASTA)— the foremost institution in aerosol research in India, ICAS 2023’s focus is to understand how both national and global policies related to sustainable development and net zero can reflect on and address air pollution.

 

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Speak now or forever hold your breath

By Vanessa Glavinskas / Published: June 15, 2023

Originally posted on EDF.

A car with grey exhaust pouring out of its tailpipe

Exposure to high levels of tailpipe pollution is linked to asthma, heart disease and cancer. (Getty)

Right now, almost every vehicle on U.S. roads emits tailpipe pollution.

That means every time you idle in heavy traffic — or spend time in a bustling city or near a major transportation hub — you’re being exposed to a steady stream of pollutants, including soot, carbon dioxide, nitrous oxides and carbon monoxide.

This tailpipe pollution is harmful for many reasons. Exposure to high levels is linked to asthma, heart disease, even cancer. Scientists from the Environmental Defense Fund found that even small increases in exposure are associated with increased health care costs. And transportation is the biggest source of planet-warming pollution in the United States.

Now, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has proposed two rules that would limit the amount of tailpipe pollution that automakers can release into the atmosphere. The rules would dramatically clean up the air we breathe while reducing almost 10 billion tons of climate pollution.

Tell the EPA to cut tailpipe pollution and green-light clean cars!

If the standards are adopted, the EPA estimates that two-thirds of new passenger cars and trucks sold in the U.S. would be free of tailpipe pollution by 2032, and up to half of certain types of new medium- and heavy-duty vehicles — including urban delivery trucks, freight trucks and buses — would be zero-emitting.

“In addition to its massive climate benefits, this proposal can make a huge difference for urban air pollution, reducing premature deaths and asthma attacks,” says Environmental Defense Fund’s President Fred Krupp.

It’s not just environmentalists — automakers are on board with lower emissions too

The proposals have found support not only from health and environmental advocates, but from automakers as well. That’s due, in part, to the investments that car manufacturers have already made in zero-emission vehicles.

Over the past eight years, companies have announced investments of more than $120 billion in EV and battery manufacturing. Federal investments, like those included in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Act and Inflation Reduction Act, have also increased, and costs are declining rapidly. In just three years, U.S. factories will be capable of producing more than 4.3 million new electric vehicles each year, according to a recent EDF study.

Companies with clean vehicle goals include GM, with a goal of eliminating tailpipe pollution from new passenger vehicles by 2035. Ford expects electric vehicles to represent half of its global sales volume by 2030. Volvo has committed to selling 100% zero-emission vehicles by 2030, and Volkswagen plans to sell 55% zero-emission vehicles by 2030. Truck manufacturers Navistar and Daimler Trucks North America both project 50 to 60% of their sales will be zero-emission vehicles by 2030.

“In coming up with these standards, the EPA looked at the available technology, assessed the feasibility of those technologies, and considered the lead time and cost,” says EDF attorney Peter Zalzal. “A really powerful proof point that they are achievable is that manufacturers are on board.”

“Electric vehicle technology is already very firmly in the marketplace and accelerating,” adds Zalzal. “So it makes sense for the EPA to set tailpipe pollution standards based on that technology.”

The new tailpipe emission standards are expected to be finalized by the end of 2023.

More clean air action

Vehicles aren’t the only source of air pollution getting attention from the Biden administration.

EPA Administrator Michael Regan recently stood in front of smokestacks in Louisiana to announce the agency’s intent to sharply reduce toxic emissions from about 250 of the country’s largest petrochemical facilities, many of which are located along the Mississippi River between Baton Rouge and New Orleans — a corridor also known as Cancer Alley.

Near one chemical plant in St. John the Baptist Parish, a primarily Black neighborhood, residents’ cancer risk is 700 times the national average.

“The cancer rates here are unbelievable,” says St. John Parish resident Robert Taylor. “By the time our children are 2 years old, they have been exposed to as much pollution as most people are exposed to over 70 years.”

Since March, the agency has also proposed strengthening protections for mercury and other toxic pollution from coal-fired power plants and finalized its “good neighbor” plan to protect millions of people from poorly controlled smokestack pollution that wafts across state lines, a move that’s expected to prevent nearly 110,000 asthma attacks and improve health for millions of people in downwind states.

“All of these actions are good for the climate, they are good for protecting public health, for growing jobs and protecting consumers,” Zalzal says.

Posted in Concerned Citizen, Public Health/Environmental Official / Authors: / Comments are closed

New EDF study shows unequal burden from truck-related pollution near warehouses

By Aileen Nowlan / Published: May 12, 2023

New research from EDF–Making the Invisible Visible: Shining a Light on Warehouse Truck Air Pollution—shows some 15 million people live within a half-mile of a warehouse in 10 states across the United States. The research demonstrates how the burden from truck-related air pollution exposure is not evenly distributed. In all of the states studied, warehouses and the trucks they attract are disproportionately located in Black, Latino, Asian or American Indian communities as well as areas of low wealth.

The boom in just-in-time delivery has resulted in a rise in warehouse-related truck traffic.

While warehouses and the trucks that deliver their goods became more common after the deregulation of the trucking industry, the explosion of just-in-time production and next-day delivery has brought more of these facilities much closer to people’s homes and in more communities than ever before. Understanding who is bearing the brunt of the health burdens associated with warehouse activity can help policymakers, businesses and communities implement smart, targeted policies to reduce emissions and protect health, keep kids in school and improve workforce productivity.

How we did it: Our teams identified warehouse location data and analyzed it through the lens of our Proximity Mapping framework that allowed us to learn demographic information about the people living near them.

Why it matters: More than 1 million children under 5 live within a half-mile of warehouses, making them  more vulnerable to adverse health impacts like asthma. Their families are more vulnerable to adverse birth outcomes, dementia, heart disease and stroke, , because of the pollution from the trucks that serve warehouses.

The good news: Low-cost solutions are available today to reduce the pollution burden on these communities. Increased air quality monitoring and zero-emissions goods transport are all tools we can tap into now to reduce harm from truck pollution.

Meanwhile companies are investing in zero-emission delivery vans, yard trucks and even long-haul vehicles. States can help advance this trend through policies such as the Advanced Clean Trucks rule, which eases permitting requirements for charging infrastructure. The EPA’s recently proposed tailpipe regulations are designed to ensure that half of up to half of new urban delivery freight vehicles sold by 2032 will be zero-emitting. Indirect Source Review rules are a tool for state and local leaders to ensure warehouses don’t burden their neighbors.

But we can’t let up. Communities deserve to know what kinds of businesses are operating near their homes and schools, especially if they attract vehicles that are harmful to their health. We must demand greater transparency around warehouse locations and the extent of pollution generated at warehouses. Transparency around health costs and the cost of clean up is essential for fairness to those already impacted by warehouses, while alerting communities facing warehouse expansion to the threats posed by their new neighbors.

Posted in Community Organizer, Concerned Citizen, Government Official/Policymaker, Homepage, Public Health/Environmental Official / Comments are closed