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State Sen. Michael Rubio has made it clear that he represents the interests of polluters over his constituents in Arvin, Wasco, Shafter and Delano. Recently, more than 500 Kern County residents flooded Rubio’s office with calls of support for AB 1990, the “Solar for All” bill. The bill would have helped residents in California’s most disadvantaged communities install rooftop solar systems and create jobs where they are most needed, at little to no cost to utility ratepayers. Rubio voted against this bill. He listened to the powerful, high-paid industry lobbyists rather than the overwhelming number of Kern residents who called in to support the bill.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today fined Chemical Waste Management, Inc. (CWM) $9,375 for a single instance in which it failed to analyze leachate for polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) before disposal at its Kettleman Hills Facility located in Kings County, Calif.
A state plan to rank communities by the cumulative effects of pollution on residents has raised objections among local business leaders, who say it would kill job development in areas identified as disadvantaged.
The proposed California Communities Environmental Health Screening Tool would use existing environmental, health and socioeconomic data to score areas by ZIP code. It would take into consideration such factors as ozone pollution, traffic density, pesticide use, the number of hazardous waste dumps and cleanup sites, cancer and asthma rates, and the number of seniors and children.
The information will be used to guide local policymakers on where to direct resources and programs, said George Alexeeff, director of the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, part of the California Environmental Protection Agency.
A state plan to rank communities by the cumulative effects of pollution on residents has raised objections among local business leaders, who say it would kill job development in areas identified as disadvantaged.
Latino community groups announced today that Lisa Jackson, Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, has refused to protect the health and civil rights of Latinos in California. Community leaders are now urging President Obama to affirm that all people, regardless of race or income, should have the right to live, work, play, and pray in a safe and healthy community.
All three of California’s toxic waste dumps operate in low-income, Latino communities. Meanwhile, California regulators at the Department of Toxic Substances Control are poised to approve a permit for a massive expansion of the largest of the three dumps, located in Kettleman City.
California has not violated the civil rights of residents near three hazardous waste landfills, federal leaders ruled last week in rejecting a complaint from Latino activist groups.
Activists are gathering today in Kettleman City, neighboring the largest of the three landfills, to ask the Obama administration to overturn the ruling by Lisa Jackson, administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Any objective and honest discussion about San Joaquin Valley air quality must start with an expression of gratitude to valley businesses, farmers and residents for their large investment in cleaner air, and an acknowledgment that those sacrifices have paid off in substantial improvements in air quality in the past 20 years.