Discourse for all interested in all things air-quality related
In 1977, traveling to and from work required driving six miles (one way). What I could count on was the drive taking at least half an hour to work and 45 minutes from. I lived in Mountain View and worked in Sunnyvale on California’s San Francisco peninsula. That the distance driven was half a dozen … Read more
It is obvious I have done quite a lot of writing on air quality matters in the San Joaquin Valley. The Valley is where I live and, sadly, it is among this nation’s most notorious or worst offender areas for polluted air. Both childhood and adult asthma numbers here seem disproportionately high compared to other regions. These … Read more
On Nov. 19, 2012, in “Air pollution: The enormity of it all,” I wrote: “More importantly, with the pollution already present, the very same that is causing a number of health issues for those people adversely affected by such, how does society effectively mitigate the impact, so that the numbers in this regard do not increase … Read more
The California Environmental Protection Agency Air Resources Board (ARB) states: “CA’s population reached 24 million people. Total registered vehicles surpassed 17 million and vehicle miles traveled is 155 billion. Cumulative CA vehicle emissions for [nitrogen oxides] and [hydrocarbons] remain at 1970 levels of 1.6 million tons/year despite a rise of 45 billion in VMT over … Read more
Continuing the discussion from Jan. 7, 2013, Editor Jim Wrinn in the Sept. 2011 issue of Trains writes: “By 2050, 100 million more Americans will live here. Will we plan ahead or just deal with the crisis?”1 Considering what was written, the vehicle in which these statements appear and keeping it all in perspective, one … Read more
In my collection of resource materials, I found a book that I had completely forgotten about. The book is titled: “30 Simple Energy Things You Can Do To Save The Earth.”1 Energy savings idea number 27 on page 57 has to do with: “Auto Savings.” On that page near the top in italics is the … Read more
By the time the mid-20th century rolled around, the American streetcar had seen far better days. But for this inspiring institution, it was neither the end of the road nor the end of the American electric street railway story. Yes, the near-total disappearance of the once-mighty and utilitarian trolley network is sad, but it’s also profound, though … Read more
There are all kinds of ways to make air cleaner – everything from the simple to the substantial and from the subliminal to the sensational. From an earlier post – “Air pollution: The enormity of it all,” I listed various pollution sources. Repeating those here, these are: Agricultural Commercial (Business) Construction (and Demolition) Energy Production … Read more
California is leading the field it seems, in getting laws passed to help bring it to a greener, more sustainable state. The frontline lawmakers responsible for getting key greenhouse-gas-emissions-reduction legislation passed, plus all those keeping a close eye on related activities, deserve praise. But being among the nation’s more notorious dirty – and harmful – air … Read more
There are currently an estimated 314,878,498 Americans total, according to U.S. Census Bureau data. For a population of almost 315 million and growing, there are 4 million accessible lane-miles of roadway, Yul Kwon in “NATION ON THE MOVE” (Episode 2 of America Revealed, a 2012 Public Broadcasting System broadcast), revealed, on which an estimated 200,260,571 cars … Read more