A new air quality bill in the California state assembly would increase oversight of the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District. Assembly Bill 2550 aims to improve the air quality in Fresno County by further regulating emissions from certain industries. Fresno Democrat Joaquin Arambula authored the bill. He called on the California Air Resources Board to “engage more strongly” with this issue.
Proponents of the bill criticized the county as kowtowing to industrial interests. The San Joaquin Valley’s air district was repeatedly unable to meet federal air quality standards over the course of the last 25 years. This bill would give the state the authority to intervene. And, it would give the state broad power to shore up the Valley’s shortcomings.
The EPA already needs to come up with its own plan for the San Joaquin Valley. According to a 2018 court decision, the EPA wrongly approved the most recent Valley pollution control plan. The agency failed to see that the Valley did not have the money to execute the plan.
The San Joaquin Valley includes most of the Central Valley south of the Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta. It is home to some 4 million Californians.
The air quality bill addresses worsening Central Valley air
Fresno County was recently reported to have the worst air quality in the US. The American Lung Association’s report, published last month, said the Fresno Metro Area’s air quality worsened by about 40% over the last year. Also, it singled out wildfire smoke as a major cause. Combine these with increased diesel smoke and agricultural dust, and Fresno County has an uphill battle ahead.
Air pollution is a major issue facing California today. Annually, air pollution kills more Fresno County residents than car accidents. In the face of this public health crisis, everyone must do their part to reduce air pollution. Fresno Car Transport accomplishes this by using a state-of-the-art fleet of trucks that produce fewer emissions.
