By Clean Air Task Force
Every day, Americans are needlessly sickened from exposure to air pollution in the form of fine particles. Overall, health researchers estimate that fine particles, such as those found in diesel exhaust, shorten the lives of 70,000 Americans each year. Legions of published, peer-reviewed studies have documented the increased exposure and resultant health risk from particles in and around nearby roadways. When during our day are we exposed to these particles? According to the California Air Resources Board, although we spend only about six percent of our day commuting to and from work, it is during that time when we receive over half of our exposure. Using comparable instruments and research techniques as those employed by health researchers at major universities, Clean Air Task Force (CATF) investigated the exposure to diesel particles during typical commutes in four cities: Austin, Texas, Boston, Massachusetts, New York City, and Columbus, Ohio. In addition, CATF tested the air quality benefits due to emission control retrofits of transit buses in Boston and transit buses and garbage trucks in New York City. CATF's investigation demonstrated that whether you commute by car, bus, ferry, train, or on foot, you may be exposed to high levels of diesel particles.
Download printable executive summary [PDF, 1MB]
Download full 82-page white paper: [PDF, 5MB]
CATF Special Report 2007-1: A Multi-City Investigation of Exposure to Diesel Exhaust in Multiple Commuting Modes
TV Coverage*
Download printable report [PDF, 2MB]
Showing posts with label air quality. Show all posts
Showing posts with label air quality. Show all posts
Friday, August 24, 2007
Monday, August 20, 2007
Another letter to Highland Villlge Mayor Costa and Sen. Chris Harris
Dear Mayor Costa and Senator Harris,
Your letter states that "TXDOT has assured me that there is no cause for concern along Highway FM2499. Further, TxDOT has stated there is no need for an Environmental Impact Study [EIS] as a result of the Lancet study being published".
I hope that, as elected officials, you were diligent in your investigation into this very real concern. That you reviewed all the documents TXDOT used in their study to support your above quote and your position that our children will not suffer lung damage do to this Highway. We would all very much like to see these documented studies from TXDOT (Tuesday would be an opportune time) as the only findings we have, through extensive research, support the Lancet study.
Please provide the names of the TXDOT officials you conferred with as they have more information then the Director of Environmental Affairs appears to have. This is from a July 9th letter we received;
In a recent letter from TXDOT, Dianna Noble (Director of Environmental Affairs) provides the following assessment of TXDOT's capability to understand pollution impact on human health. In summary:
1) The EPA tool has limited applicability at the project level
2) The limitations of dispersion models makes it difficult to assess potential health risks
3) Shortcomings in current techniques preclude us from reaching meaningful conclusions about project-specific health impact
4) These limitations do not allow us to accurately predict the risk of potential impacts on the community and public health following the construction of a proposed road
Regards,
Todd Luther
Your letter states that "TXDOT has assured me that there is no cause for concern along Highway FM2499. Further, TxDOT has stated there is no need for an Environmental Impact Study [EIS] as a result of the Lancet study being published".
I hope that, as elected officials, you were diligent in your investigation into this very real concern. That you reviewed all the documents TXDOT used in their study to support your above quote and your position that our children will not suffer lung damage do to this Highway. We would all very much like to see these documented studies from TXDOT (Tuesday would be an opportune time) as the only findings we have, through extensive research, support the Lancet study.
Please provide the names of the TXDOT officials you conferred with as they have more information then the Director of Environmental Affairs appears to have. This is from a July 9th letter we received;
In a recent letter from TXDOT, Dianna Noble (Director of Environmental Affairs) provides the following assessment of TXDOT's capability to understand pollution impact on human health. In summary:
1) The EPA tool has limited applicability at the project level
2) The limitations of dispersion models makes it difficult to assess potential health risks
3) Shortcomings in current techniques preclude us from reaching meaningful conclusions about project-specific health impact
4) These limitations do not allow us to accurately predict the risk of potential impacts on the community and public health following the construction of a proposed road
Regards,
Todd Luther
Saturday, July 7, 2007
Updates to our sister sites
By Faith Chatham - July 7, 2007
DFW REGIONAL CONCERNED CITIZENS publishes several related sites. In addition to our main page where readers can sign up to receive action alerts, we also publish several other sites.
ABOUT AIR AND WATER focuses on the environment. We post articles about gas drilling, pipelines, and water contamination, air quality, TXU buyout and other environmental issues. In the sidebar, we have links to sources for solar street lights, real time air quality readings including Current Ozone
Levels for the DFW Region, Hourly Air Pollutant and Water Pollutant Data, Airborne Particles (Smoke, soot, dust), Air Pollulant Watch List, and Air Quality Alert Data. There are links to websites of environmental groups where readers can get involved, Environmental Advocacy Groups in the NCTCOG region, and Water Conservation Districts Websites, If you know of websites which should be listed, please send the link to us at dfwrcc@gmail.com.
Most of the information on About Air and Water is activist-oriented. However we do post stories about events and entertainment including an article on the UTA Planetarium and links to games. We include links to interesting environmental sites. Resource links range from suppliers who allow you to rent solar panels to household tips for living green.
Articles are archived monthly. Visitors can read and print archived artices and search for them by keyword (or label/tags)
TEXAS RAIL is one of our newer blogs. We post content about rail relocation, schedules for the Fort Worth T, Trinity Rail Express, DART and links to Amtrak, schedules of meetings pertaining to rail services in Texas. We concentrate on the 16 County NCTCOG region but post content about rail in all areas of the state of Texas.
This site contains activist information but also contains lots of entertainment links of interest to rail enthusiasts. Content on the site is archived monthly. Archived posts can be read and printed. The site can be searched to topic, tag/label.
Our newest site is People Profit Power - Healthcare & Insurance or PPPHI. This site focuses on healthcare and insurance. In the sidebar we post links to social service resources in the NCTCOG region, helpful insurance informational links and other resources. On this site we focus on access to healthcare, insurance and governmental policy.
NEW TEXAS LAWS is an informational site. Many of the activists in the DFWRCC network have followed numerous bills through the 80th Texas Legislature. NEW TEXAS LAWS is a site where we can check on the language of a bill once it has been signed into law or became law without the governor's signature.
Grassroots News U Can Use is our oldest site. However, we only began listing it on search engines last month. For about a year it was used to post articles on the Trans Texas Corridor and candidates campaign diaries. Usually these posts were linked to articles in other blogs. Last month we began using Grassroots as a companion site to DFW REGIONAL CONCERNED CITIZENS. Content on DFWRCC focuses mainly on ethics and highway transportation. Grassroots News U Can Use contains content which amplifies transportation/ethics in government activism.
The Arlington Texan is a hometown portal for several of the founders of DFW RCC. It is an entertainment portal which allows us to post information to assist citizens of Arlington, Texas in learning of meetings and resources and information for participating in the environmental/ governmental process in Arlington. The media market is very fragmented in the DFW Metroplex. No one newspaper or television station reaches a majority of the citizens of Arlington. The "shelf life" of television broadcasts and newspaper stories is very short. The Arlington Texan is our attempt to keep some important content available longer to the citizens of Arlington. In the near future we will be adding new columnists on this site.
HUMAN IN TEXAS is DFW RCC co-founder Steve Blair's site. Steve is an environmentalist and policy analyst who has written on environmental and governmental issues for many years. Steve has collaborated on much of the research which has been posted on various sites by Faith Chatham during the past 2 years. He is one of several people who function as a "think tank" within the DFW RCC community.
DFW REGIONAL CONCERNED CITIZENS publishes several related sites. In addition to our main page where readers can sign up to receive action alerts, we also publish several other sites.
ABOUT AIR AND WATER focuses on the environment. We post articles about gas drilling, pipelines, and water contamination, air quality, TXU buyout and other environmental issues. In the sidebar, we have links to sources for solar street lights, real time air quality readings including Current Ozone
Levels for the DFW Region, Hourly Air Pollutant and Water Pollutant Data, Airborne Particles (Smoke, soot, dust), Air Pollulant Watch List, and Air Quality Alert Data. There are links to websites of environmental groups where readers can get involved, Environmental Advocacy Groups in the NCTCOG region, and Water Conservation Districts Websites, If you know of websites which should be listed, please send the link to us at dfwrcc@gmail.com.
Most of the information on About Air and Water is activist-oriented. However we do post stories about events and entertainment including an article on the UTA Planetarium and links to games. We include links to interesting environmental sites. Resource links range from suppliers who allow you to rent solar panels to household tips for living green.
Articles are archived monthly. Visitors can read and print archived artices and search for them by keyword (or label/tags)
TEXAS RAIL is one of our newer blogs. We post content about rail relocation, schedules for the Fort Worth T, Trinity Rail Express, DART and links to Amtrak, schedules of meetings pertaining to rail services in Texas. We concentrate on the 16 County NCTCOG region but post content about rail in all areas of the state of Texas.
This site contains activist information but also contains lots of entertainment links of interest to rail enthusiasts. Content on the site is archived monthly. Archived posts can be read and printed. The site can be searched to topic, tag/label.
Our newest site is People Profit Power - Healthcare & Insurance or PPPHI. This site focuses on healthcare and insurance. In the sidebar we post links to social service resources in the NCTCOG region, helpful insurance informational links and other resources. On this site we focus on access to healthcare, insurance and governmental policy.
NEW TEXAS LAWS is an informational site. Many of the activists in the DFWRCC network have followed numerous bills through the 80th Texas Legislature. NEW TEXAS LAWS is a site where we can check on the language of a bill once it has been signed into law or became law without the governor's signature.
Grassroots News U Can Use is our oldest site. However, we only began listing it on search engines last month. For about a year it was used to post articles on the Trans Texas Corridor and candidates campaign diaries. Usually these posts were linked to articles in other blogs. Last month we began using Grassroots as a companion site to DFW REGIONAL CONCERNED CITIZENS. Content on DFWRCC focuses mainly on ethics and highway transportation. Grassroots News U Can Use contains content which amplifies transportation/ethics in government activism.
The Arlington Texan is a hometown portal for several of the founders of DFW RCC. It is an entertainment portal which allows us to post information to assist citizens of Arlington, Texas in learning of meetings and resources and information for participating in the environmental/ governmental process in Arlington. The media market is very fragmented in the DFW Metroplex. No one newspaper or television station reaches a majority of the citizens of Arlington. The "shelf life" of television broadcasts and newspaper stories is very short. The Arlington Texan is our attempt to keep some important content available longer to the citizens of Arlington. In the near future we will be adding new columnists on this site.
HUMAN IN TEXAS is DFW RCC co-founder Steve Blair's site. Steve is an environmentalist and policy analyst who has written on environmental and governmental issues for many years. Steve has collaborated on much of the research which has been posted on various sites by Faith Chatham during the past 2 years. He is one of several people who function as a "think tank" within the DFW RCC community.
Friday, July 6, 2007
Confidentiality Interests Prevent DOT From Handing Over Docs
By Laura McGann - July 5, 2007
The Department of Transportation is citing "confidentiality interests of the Executive Branch" as the reason for hanging on to at least 53 documents the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform wants to see.
The committee requested the documents for its investigation into whether DOT improperly lobbied Congress on behalf of the auto industry. DOT maintains that anti-lobbying measures do not apply in the alleged scheme because members of the agency contacted Congress directly. The measures only applies when an agency enlists citizens to lobby officials, lawyers for DOT argue.
Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA) still wants a full look at the case. The situation emerged from California's request for an Environmental Protection Agency waiver that would allow it to heighten emissions standards in the state. When the deadline for EPA to make a decision neared, DOT employees contacted members of Congress about how the decision could affect the auto industry in their districts.
See Tpmuckraker
DOT Defends Lobbying Congress For Auto Industry
By Laura McGann - June 14, 2007
The Department of Transportation said in a letter earlier this week that anti-lobbying measures do not apply to its officers who contact members of Congress on behalf of the auto industry.
DOT announced this stance in a letter from the agency’s acting general counsel responding to the head of the House Committee on Oversight and Government’s request for information. The committee wants to hear more about an alleged plan to pressure members of Congress into persuading the Environmental Protection Agency to deny California a waiver allowing it to raise carbon emission standards.
DOT’s head lawyer Rosalind Knapp argued in her response that anti-lobbying law only applies when agencies call on private citizens to lobby Congress on their behalf. She also said that she advised several officials that it would not violate anti-lobbying provisions if they contacted members of Congress directly:
Despite the historical standard, Brian said she still thinks DOT’s argument is worth challenging. “I think its important not to just accept the executive branch’s opinion on what is acceptable,” Danielle said. “Congressional lawyers need to look at that law as well.”
Waxman is still pursuing the issue. He responded to the letter from DOT’s general counsel Knapp saying that there is a "need for a thorough examination of the facts”
The Department of Transportation is citing "confidentiality interests of the Executive Branch" as the reason for hanging on to at least 53 documents the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform wants to see.
The committee requested the documents for its investigation into whether DOT improperly lobbied Congress on behalf of the auto industry. DOT maintains that anti-lobbying measures do not apply in the alleged scheme because members of the agency contacted Congress directly. The measures only applies when an agency enlists citizens to lobby officials, lawyers for DOT argue.
Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA) still wants a full look at the case. The situation emerged from California's request for an Environmental Protection Agency waiver that would allow it to heighten emissions standards in the state. When the deadline for EPA to make a decision neared, DOT employees contacted members of Congress about how the decision could affect the auto industry in their districts.
See Tpmuckraker
DOT Defends Lobbying Congress For Auto Industry
By Laura McGann - June 14, 2007
The Department of Transportation said in a letter earlier this week that anti-lobbying measures do not apply to its officers who contact members of Congress on behalf of the auto industry.
DOT announced this stance in a letter from the agency’s acting general counsel responding to the head of the House Committee on Oversight and Government’s request for information. The committee wants to hear more about an alleged plan to pressure members of Congress into persuading the Environmental Protection Agency to deny California a waiver allowing it to raise carbon emission standards.
DOT’s head lawyer Rosalind Knapp argued in her response that anti-lobbying law only applies when agencies call on private citizens to lobby Congress on their behalf. She also said that she advised several officials that it would not violate anti-lobbying provisions if they contacted members of Congress directly:
DOTs actions in no way violated anti-lobbying restrictions, as those provisions apply to and prohibit “grass roots” lobbying intended to encourage third parties, members of special interest groups, or the general public to contact members of Congreess or State legislatures in support of or opposition to a legistlative matter.
The executive director of The Project on Government Oversight Danielle Brian said the “grass roots” language comes from a case under the Reagan administration where the Pentagon and Lockheed Martin were accused of illegally lobbying Congress. The case made it illegal for agencies to get community members involved in lobbying, but allowed agencies to contact members of Congress directly.
Despite the historical standard, Brian said she still thinks DOT’s argument is worth challenging. “I think its important not to just accept the executive branch’s opinion on what is acceptable,” Danielle said. “Congressional lawyers need to look at that law as well.”
Waxman is still pursuing the issue. He responded to the letter from DOT’s general counsel Knapp saying that there is a "need for a thorough examination of the facts”
NOTE by Faith Chatham: The letter touches on a similar issue to that raised in Texas when US DOT stated that proposed legislation would violate Federal policy and probably cause loss of transportation funding.
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