LAKE COUNTY — The American Lung Association released the State of the Air 2011 annual report on air quality, which includes lists of both the cleanest and most polluted areas in the country.
The report reveals that though air pollution continues to threaten the lives and health of thousands of Bay Area residents, the trends show progress has been made in improving air quality. The findings reinforce the importance of state and federal clean air laws that are cleaning up air pollution, protecting health and saving lives.
“Air pollution is a serious health threat to all Californians,” said Jane Warner, President and CEO of the American Lung Association in California. “The Bay Area has made tremendous improvements in the fight for clean air thanks to the work of the state”s strong Air Resources Board and the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, but much still needs to be done.”
The Bay Area received mixed grades in the report. Contra Costa, Santa Clara and Solano counties earned F grades for both ozone (smog) and particle pollution (soot), while Humboldt, Santa Cruz and Sonoma counties earned A grades for both. On the list for the cleanest counties in the country for ozone were Humboldt, Lake, Marin, Mendocino, San Francisco, San Mateo and Santa Cruz. On the list for the cleanest counties for particle pollution were Humboldt, Monterey, San Benito, Santa Cruz and Sonoma.
Lake County once again earned a spot on the list as the sixth cleanest county for year round particle pollution levels. Salinas also ranked 10th place in the country for cleanest city for year round particle pollution, and also made the list for cleanest cities for short-term particle pollution.
While the cooler coastal climate protects the Bay Area from more severe levels of pollution found throughout the state, clean and healthy air is still a challenge in this region, with more than four million residents living in counties with failing grades for either ozone or particle pollution. The counties of San Francisco and San Mateo both earned an “A” for ozone or smog pollution, but more inland counties like Contra Costa or Santa Clara earned failing grades for ozone and fine particulate pollution. State and local efforts to reduce pollution, including the Winter Spare the Air wood smoke program, are paying off, with a 65 percent reduction in unhealthy particle pollution days reported over the past five State of the Air reports. There is still a ways to go, but the Bay Area is making clean air progress.
