SCAQMD
Another California Regulatory Agency in Crisis: Southern California’s Air Quality Management District Fires Longtime Executive Officer
Barry Wallerstein’s Ouster from SCAQMD Signals Tilt Away from Protection of Public Health
In a move that shocked the environmental advocacy community and low-income communities of color that suffer most from the impacts of poor air quality in Los Angeles, the governing board of the South Coast Air Quality Management District fired its longtime executive officer Barry Wallerstein today, voting 7-6 in closed session to remove him from …
CONTINUE READINGAir Pollution in China Shuts Down City of 11 Million
The airpocalypse is back. What should Chinese leaders do about it?
On Sunday, the start of the heating season in northern China brought the “airpocalypse” back with a vengeance (although some might say it never left). Harbin, the capital of Heilongjiang Province and home to 11 million people, registered fine particulate (PM2.5) pollution levels beyond 500 on the Chinese Air Quality Index, which is considered hazardous …
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CONTINUE READINGWill the West Coast get hit with Japanese nuclear fallout?
No, says the South Coast Air Quality Management District. For reasons unknown to me, I’m on their e-mail list, and this just came through: You have probably heard news reports about harmful radiation escaping from damaged nuclear power plants in Japan following the recent tsunami. Some have even voiced concern that this radiation could travel …
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CONTINUE READINGCalifornia Supreme Court decides in favor of accurate environmental impact analysis (and cleaner air)
The California Supreme Court just issued an important decision interpreting public agencies’ obligations under the California Environmental Quality Act. This case will result in cleaner air in southern California. It also establishes that public agencies must measure environmental impacts from a new project against actual existing conditions, rather than against theoretical conditions (based on permits …
CONTINUE READINGThe California Supreme Court examines technology-based air quality emissions standards
The California Supreme Court granted review last week in a potentially important environmental case, National Paint and Coatings Association v. South Coast Air Quality Management District. The opinion of the Court of Appeal – certainly among the most colorfully-written appellate opinions I’ve ever read, and worth checking out for that reason alone – held that the …
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