Air Quality

Pol­i­cy­makers often develop new envi­ron­mental rules and reg­u­la­tions based on the rec­om­men­da­tions of researchers whose exper­tise lie in the envi­ron­mental health sciences. Helen Suh, for example, a newly appointed asso­ciate pro­fessor of health sci­ences in the Bouvé Col­lege of Health Sci­ences, is one of the researchers at the fore­front of helping sci­en­tists and gov­ern­ment offi­cials under­stand air-​​pollution expo­sure and its impact on health.

In study findings announced Sept. 28, UCLA researchers report that they measured air pollutants during last year's Carmageddon (July 15–17) and found that when 10 miles of the 405 closed, air quality near the shuttered portion improved within minutes, reaching levels 83 percent better than on comparable weekends. Because traffic dipped all over Southern California that weekend, air quality also improved 75 percent in parts of West Los Angeles and Santa Monica and an average of 25 percent regionally—from Ventura to Yucaipa, and Long Beach to Santa Clarita.

Recent attention has focused on the high rates of annual carbon sequestration in vegetated coastal ecosystems—marshes, mangroves, and seagrasses—that may be lost with habitat destruction (‘conversion’). Relatively unappreciated, however, is that conversion of these coastal ecosystems also impacts very large pools of previously-sequestered carbon. Read more

As an energy analyst at the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), Laura Wisland focuses on developing state policies that will effectively increase the amount of renewable energy used in California. She provides technical and policy analysis to legislative and regulatory agencies to successfully guide implementation of the state's renewables electricity standard and designs effective electricity sector climate change policies in accordance with the state's landmark global warming bill.

In 1997, Oakland, California, began to face the challenge of sustainability on a community level. Today, Oakland enjoys cleaner air, improved recycling, more bike lanes – and a consistent ranking in the Top Ten U.S. Green Cities. Garrett Fitzgerald, Oakland’s Sustainability Coordinator and a Switzer Fellow, shares key steps.