Air Pollution

One would expect to see growing devotion by the Democratic-led California Legislature to do more to help Californians access electric cars and cut pollution from delivery trucks. Instead, the California Assembly, specifically its transportation committee, has been the graveyard for legislation designed to help advance zero-emission vehicles.

California's Imperial County is emblematic of life for millions of people around the state who live under an umbrella of bad air quality or who have contaminated soil or lack access to clean water.  The majority of these environmental hot spots are concentrated in low-income communities of color.

Spots in California are registering, by one measurement, the most polluted air on earth. If this is the “new abnormal” of wildfires, health advocates say the state will need to step up efforts to educate and protect the public.

The dairy industry is responsible for 75 percent of agriculture’s methane emissions, but it has focused on unproven bio-digester technology. California should look at less costly alternatives.

Climate-warming compounds are released by charred forests long after wildfires have been put out. That may do more to warm the planet more than the immediate harm from smoky air.

The Trump administration proposed to revamp—and loosen—fuel mileage standards, challenging California’s authority to regulate air pollution within its borders, and enraging California officials.

The sparring between the Trump administration and California over environmental rollbacks is getting serious.