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Oct. 12, 2005
As Part of AQMD Chairman’s Special
Initiative
The South Coast Air Quality Management District’s Governing Board has
scheduled a special meeting at Long Beach City Hall on Nov. 4 to seek public
input on issues related to air pollution at the ports.
“The ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach are the No. 1 fixed source of
air pollution in our region,” said AQMD Governing Board Chairman William A.
Burke. “Reducing port emissions will be the linchpin of our efforts to
achieve clean air during the next several years.”
The AQMD Board meeting is scheduled for Friday, Nov. 4 in the City
Council Chambers at Long Beach City Hall, 333 West Ocean Blvd. The Board
will conduct its regular business from 9 a.m. until approximately 11:30
a.m., and will then take public comment on port issues from 11:30 a.m. to
about 1:30 p.m. (To help gauge attendance, those planning to attend
are requested to R.S.V.P. before Tuesday, November 1, to Leann Levine by
e-mail at leann@nakatomipr.com or by phone at (310) 914-5000.)
During the meeting, AQMD officials plan to outline the scope of the air
pollution problem at the ports and engage residents, port representatives
and other government agencies in a constructive dialogue on the most
effective solutions to the problem.
“I believe an important tool for accomplishing this is to hear directly
from those impacted by air pollution – the people living and working in the
communities in this area,” Burke said.
The aggregated smog-forming and toxic diesel emissions from the ships,
trains, trucks and equipment at the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles
represent the largest single fixed source of air pollution in the Los
Angeles Basin. Ships alone are responsible for 50 tons per day of
smog-forming nitrogen oxides, and their emissions are expected to nearly
triple by 2020 due to increasing trade traffic.
Sources operating in the port area also contribute nearly one-quarter of
all diesel particulate matter emissions in the region. Diesel emissions are
responsible for about 70 percent of the total cancer risk from air
pollution. Diesel emissions also contribute to unhealthful levels of fine
particles and smog.
The Long Beach meeting fulfils an important element of Chairman Burke’s
2005 “AQMD is Clearing the Air” initiative, which included the goal of
hosting an AQMD Governing Board meeting in a selected community.
Chairman Burke’s initiative was adopted by AQMD’s Board in January in
response to last year’s landmark USC Children’s Health Study. It showed
that many children growing up in Southern California may suffer permanently
underdeveloped lungs as a result of breathing smog.
AQMD is the air pollution control agency for Orange County and major
portions of Los Angeles, San Bernardino and Riverside counties.
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