Riverside County Air Quality Gets "F" In Latest American Lung Association Report

The Los Angeles-Long Beach-Riverside region continues to rank among the worst in the nation when it comes to air quality, even though some improvement has been made over the past year, according to a report released today by the American Lung Association.

The region ranked among the 10 worst in the nation in three categories of air-quality measurement -- ozone (smog) pollution, short-term particle pollution and annual particle pollution.

The area was worst in the nation for ozone pollution, and second-worst for annual particle pollution.

“Ozone and particle pollution levels today still contribute to thousands of hospitalizations, emergency room visits and early deaths every year,'' according to Dr. Sonal Patel, volunteer physician for the American Lung Association in California. “People suffering from asthma and other lung and heart diseases are particularly at risk. Sickness and deaths caused by air pollution not only represent personal tragedies, they also place a huge financial burden on our health care system.''

The annual “State of the Air'' report noted that some cities in California, including Los Angeles, were making notable improvements in reducing air pollution, with enhanced vehicle and fuel regulations playing a major role.

But the poor air quality continues to persist, the report found, citing high emissions from cars, trucks, buses, diesel equipment, oil refineries, manufacturing plants and home fireplaces.

“California has made tremendous improvements in the fight for clean air, thanks to the work of the state's strong Air Resources Board and local Air Quality Management Districts, but much still needs to be done,'' according to Jane Warner, president of the Lung Association in California. “Cleaning up pollution results in healthier air. Now is not the time to stop progress.'' --City News Service