Kirsch Foundation Environmental Issues

While often the most visible and heated environmental struggles occur in the legislative process, a law's ultimate impact depends on its regulatory enforcement. For this reason, the Foundation closely scrutinizes policy-making progression, from a bill's introduction and movement in the California Legislature, to action by the Governor, to its final implementation. Along with partner organizations, we have provided input into and continue to offer oversight for several significant California regulatory issues, listed below in priority order.

San Joaquin Valley Air Quality

Statewide Implementation Plan (SIP)
Since 2005, we have played a major role in the California Air Resources Board (CARB) regulatory process for crafting updated 8-hour ozone (due June 2007) and PM 2.5 (due April 2008) State Implementation Plans (SIPs). Ozone is a gas formed at ground level by a chemical reaction between oxides of nitrogen and volatile organic compounds in the presence of sunlight. It is the gas responsible for the “smog” formed on hot days. PM 2.5 is particulate matter, or soot, and it is expelled from tailpipes, factory smokestacks, farm equipment and other sources.

Federal clean air laws require areas with unhealthy levels of ozone, carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide, and inhalable PM to develop SIPs describing how they will attain national ambient air quality standards. These SIPs will lay the groundwork to attain the standards in the San Joaquin Valley, which has some of the worst air quality in the nation. Over the last five years, the Valley exceeded the 8-hour ozone standard on more occasions than any other air basin. In recent studies, Valley communities consistently ranked among the worst nationally in terms of the highest long-term concentrations of PM 2.5, respectively.

In January 2007, air district staff released the final draft of the ozone SIP, saying that it will miss a federal deadline to clean up the air by 2013 and that the district needs another 11 years — plus $3 billion — to meet the goal. The Central Valley Air Quality (CVAQ) Coalition was critical of both the final SIP, arguing that extending deadlines is not the answer.

In February 2007, the International Sustainable Systems Research Center (ISSRC) released “Clearing the Air: How Clean Air is Possible and Affordable by 2013,” a report that outlined a cost-effective and achievable roadmap to cleaning up the Valley’s air by the federal deadline. Unfortunately, in April 2007, the Valley Air District Board voted 9-2 (with Raji Brar of Arvin and Henry T. Perea of Fresno opposed) to move forward with the staff’s proposal to reclassify the area to “extreme non-attainment.” The reclassification allows the District to delay cleaning up smog until 2023.

The Foundation continues to engage in advocacy related to the Valley’s SIPs.

Pesticide Issues
Pesticides are a significant source of air pollution in the agricultural regions of the San Joaquin Valley and pose a particular health threat to low-income and Latino farm worker communities. Pesticide "drift" is the airborne movement of pesticides away from the intended target. Ninety percent of pesticides used in California are prone to "drift." Pesticides have been linked to several short- and long-term effects including headaches, dizziness, skin rashes, asthma, reproductive harm, acute poisoning, and cancer.

The Kirsch Foundation, along with our Valley and statewide air quality colleagues, continues to put pressure on the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) to become more active in promoting successful pest management strategies. We frequently remind DPR that voluntary, incentive-based approaches can play an important, but not exclusive, role in those activities. DPR’s main mission is to act as a regulatory body for registering pesticides and take enforcement actions against the misuse of pesticides.

In addition, we continue to support the establishment of protection zones around homes, schools, day cares, hospitals and all sensitive sites in Tulare County, through the "Safe Air for Everyone" (SAFE) campaign. SAFE aims to protect the health of children, families and communities from the dangers of pesticides.

Indirect Source Rule
California’s San Joaquin Valley became the first place in the nation to charge builders a fee on new developments intended to help mitigate the Valley’s air pollution problems. In an historic 10-0 vote, the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District Governing Board voted in December 2005 in favor of the Indirect Source Rule (ISR) presented by District staff. The ISR proposal was supported by the environmental and public health communities, including the Kirsch Foundation, and opposed by the Building Industry Association.

The rule requires that developers of larger new residential, commercial and industrial projects reduce indirect pollution caused by construction activities and traffic linked to the development through a range of actions that reduce traffic or improve energy efficiency. If it is not feasible to reduce pollution at the development site, builders have the option of paying a fee that the Air District uses to buy and apply emissions reduction technologies elsewhere in the District. Developers can also install air pollution mitigations – such as bike lanes and energy-efficient appliances – to help decrease their ISR fees.

Indirect sources represent some of the largest pieces of the air pollution pie. In the San Joaquin Valley, tailpipe emissions from mobile sources – cars, trucks, and construction equipment, among other thing – represent about 69% of the air pollution challenge. In just 20 years, the San Joaquin Valley’s population has grown by 60% and daily vehicle miles traveled has increased by 150%. By 2040, the region’s population is expected to double to seven million. The lack of a clear policy on growth has threatened the Valley’s air quality and economic prosperity. The ISR will put the Valley on a healthier and more prosperous path by limiting the indirect emissions from new developments.

Federal Soot/PM Rule
In late 2005, the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed new, weak standards for microscopic particles of air pollution called PM 2.5, also known as particulate matter or soot. PM is expelled from tailpipes, factory smokestacks, farm equipment and other sources. When inhaled, it can penetrate deep into the lungs – exposure has been linked to severe asthma and premature deaths from heart and lung disease.

The EPA’s draft proposal was met with disappointment from national and California environmental and public health organizations, including those located in the San Joaquin Valley. The proposed level for the annual fine particle standard was much less stringent than California's precedent-setting standard and would not protect vulnerable groups, and the short term or "24-hour" standard was equally feeble.

Rejecting the recommendations of its own scientific panel and an American Lung Association report warning that a weak EPA plan would leave 77 million Americans vulnerable to deadly PM pollution, the EPA announced the final, weak rules in September 2006. The agency strengthened the standard that governs people's daily exposure to PM, but left unchanged one that deals with annual exposure. The EPA scrapped another standard for coarse particles that are found in dust.

The head of the EPA's scientific panel said that its recommendations to better protect public health were ignored. According to the panel, the EPA’s decision to eliminate regulation of annual exposure to dust is a step backward and will hinder attempts by researchers to study the health effects.

Large Confined Animal Facility Rule
In June 2005, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) defined the scope of large confined animal facilities (LCAFs) – also known as Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs) – subject to a state law-required operating permit program. SB 700 (Florez), signed into law in 2003, requires air pollution controls on LCAFs by varying degrees based on the severity of smog pollution in the state.

The Kirsch Foundation joined Central Valley Air Quality (CVAQ) members – a statewide coalition made up of environmental, community, and public health advocates - in asking CARB for a more stringent standard (of 700 milk cows) than the staff report recommendation (1,000 milk cows). Agriculture and industry interests asked for a definition of 2,500 cows. Ultimately, CARB decided that, in areas that do not meet the federal 1-hour ozone standard, dairies with more than 1,000 milk cows, layers and broilers with more than 650,000 birds, and hog operations with more than 3,000 animals are considered large confined animal facilities. In areas that meet the federal 1-hour standard, the sizes are doubled.

The San Joaquin Valley is the state's biggest source of livestock emissions – mostly from dairies – called reactive organic gases, or smog-forming ROG. The definitions of large animal operations apply throughout California, but they are more stringent in places with the dirtiest air, such as the Valley, which accounts for 63% of the state’s livestock ROG.

The 6-3 decision from CARB was the latest step toward treating dairies the same as other large sources of pollution-forming gases. By July 1, 2008, more than 225 dairies in the Valley will have to begin reducing pollution as part of the permit program.

Ports, Goods Movement and Diesel
We support efforts to reduce the public's exposure to toxic diesel pollution. Exhaust emitted from diesel-powered engines has been found to cause or exacerbate serious health problems including asthma, chronic bronchitis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or cancer. A study by the Union of Concerned Scientists found that an estimated 3,000 premature deaths occur each year in California as a result of diesel exhaust.

The Foundation has weighed in on and continues to track a variety of California ports, goods movement, and other statewide diesel issues.

Other California Regulatory Activities

CA Zero-Emission Vehicle (ZEV) Program
From sponsoring successful carpool lane incentive legislation to participating in the biennial review process, the Kirsch Foundation has worked as part of the California Zero-Emission Vehicle (ZEV) Alliance since 2000 to ensure implementation of the state’s innovative ZEV program. The ZEV Alliance is a coalition of environmental, health, public interest and industry advocacy groups working together to support and defend the California ZEV program. The program requires automakers to bring pollution-free vehicles to the mass market. Since the ZEV rules were established in the mid-1990s, thousands of clean vehicles have been placed, and operate on a daily basis, in California.

Read the history of the Kirsch Foundation’s involvement in ZEV issues.

CA Ozone Standards
We supported revisions to California's ambient air quality standard for ozone, proposed by the California Air Resources Board (CARB) and Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA), and approved by CARB in April 2005. Ozone – also known as urban smog – can affect human health in many ways including: itchy, watery eyes, scratchy throat, difficulty breathing, shortness of breath, coughs, heightened asthma rates, cardiopulmonary cases and premature deaths.

CARB endorsed the nation's most health-protective ozone standard with special consideration for children's health. Adopting this new, health-protective 8-hour standard for ozone at 0.070 parts per million (ppm) and retaining the current 1-hour standard was necessary to protect all communities in California from both short-term peak exposures and longer-term exposures that contribute to respiratory illnesses, asthma attacks, impaired lung function and growth, hospitalizations, emergency room visits, and premature death.

Greenhouse Gas Emissions
In September 2004, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) approved a landmark regulation that will require automakers to begin selling vehicles with reduced greenhouse gas emissions by model year 2009. This action represents the first-ever mandatory reduction of greenhouse gas pollutants from vehicles in the United States. The Foundation, as a member of the California Clean Cars Coalition, continues to monitor the implementation of the CARB greenhouse gas emissions regulation.