Analyze

I published this news article about a hunger strike against Formosa Plastics that occurred in Texas this fall. Despite the extremity of a 30-day hunger strike, the protesting tactic has not gained attention from national media outlets. At the time I published this article, two small environmental organizations had announced the beginning of the strike, but none continued to cover the event in the unfolding weeks. While activists are driven to take on dangerous protest tactics, little communication of these tactics has carried across mass media.

The article itself introduces Formosa Plastics through its reputation as a "serial offender" of environmental and workplace safety regulations. I list several statistics on legal fines that Formosa Plastics has accumulated overtime, using these quantities to demonstrate the scale of their harm to environmental and human health. An important limitation of this storytelling strategy, however, is that many of Formosa Plastics' actions go undocumented, and even when documented, do not lead to legal consequences. Furthermore, we should still strive to acknowledge the harms committed by Formosa Plastics that are technically within legal limits.

The Community Air Protection Program Online Resource Center is "a one-stop shop to obtain data, guidance, and tools to support improving air quality at the community scale. The Resource Center serves as a centralized repository of information and resources for use by community members, air districts, and the public. It will be continuously updated as new documents, materials, and data become available."

See this recording and supporting documents for CARB's AB 617 Consultation Group Meeting on February 26, 2020.

"The AB 617 Consultation Group includes individuals representing environmental justice organizations, air districts, industry, academia, public health organizations, and local government. Consultation Group meetings provide an opportunity to discuss of various aspects of Community Air Protection Program implementation. Consultation Group meetings complement additional outreach and consultation efforts through a variety of forums including public workshops, community meetings, and discussions with individual organizations and stakeholders."

Since its foundation in the mid 1960's, CARB has produced 0ver 2500 fact sheets, reports, datasets, or other forms of information on the state of air pollution in California, on its public health impacts, and on strategies for reducing this pollution and improving public health. See this link to their repository.

Some recent research, data, or other information relevant to our work in Santa Ana includes the AB 617 Statewide Strategy Summary - Q1-2021 Archive, Health Analysis Project,  2022 Advanced Clean Fleets Regulation - Proposed Drayage Truck Requirements, Understanding the Sources and Formation Regimes of Present-day PM2.5 to Mitigate Particulate Pollution in California, California’s 2022 Climate Change Scoping Plan Fact Sheet, Research on Health Effects of Air Pollution, and Research on Environmental Justice.

Relevant ongoing research includes a Study of Pollution Exposure and Life Expectancy Across Time in Different Generations in California.

"CARB establishes state air quality regulations which protect public health by addressing all major sources of smog-forming air pollution, and other forms of air pollution. As a result, cars today are 99 percent cleaner than in the 1970s, resulting in less air pollution overall, shorter hospital stays and fewer days missed from school and work due to respiratory and cardiopulmonary diseases.

California regulations, based on extensive research and sound science, have driven innovation, leading to significant technological developments such as the catalytic converter (which helped slash ozone by 60 percent), and the production of highly marketable low- and zero-emission cars and trucks, and cleaner fuels.

The Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 (Nunez) expanded CARB’s role to development and oversight of California’s main greenhouse gas reduction programs. These include cap-and-trade, the Low Carbon Fuel Standard and the zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) programs. As a result of these efforts, the state is on track to roll back carbon emissions to 1990 levels by 2020. With the passage of additional laws (such as SB 32 in 2014 and AB 398 in 2017), CARB is now mapping out how these programs and others can help California reach its next target: reducing greenhouse gas emissions an additional 40 percent below 1990 levels by 2030. The ultimate goal for California is to reduce greenhouse gases 80 percent below 1990 levels by 2050."

CARB is made up 16 Board members, 12 of whom are appointed by the Governor and approved by the State Senate.  Out of these 12 board members, the Chair, is the only full-time member. The governor may appoint any board member as the chair. As for the rest, six serve on local air districts, four work to shape air quality rules, and two are "public members." Two of the remaining four board members are appointed by the Senate and Assembly to represent environmental justice committees. And two other "non voting members" are also appointed by the Senate and Assembly to serve as "legislative oversight."

CARB sits at the middle tier of the California's Environmental Protection chain of command:

• The United States Environmental Protection Agency sets nationwide air quality and emissions standards and oversees state efforts and enforcement.
• The California Air Resources Board focuses on California’s unique air quality challenges by setting the state’s own stricter emissions standards for a range of statewide pollution sources including vehicles, fuels and consumer products.
• Thirty-five local air pollution control districts regulate emissions from businesses and stationary facilities, ranging from oil refineries to auto body shops and dry cleaners.

CARB was formed through a merger of the Bureau of Air Sanitation and the California Motor Vehicle Pollution Control Board in 1967, just after Ronald Reagan signed the Mulford-Carrell Air Resources Act in August of 1967. The purpose of the organization was to better enable California to address its already considerable air pollution woes. It was discovered that exhaust from motor vehicles was the primary cause of "smog" in the 1950's. In 1966, California responded with the first tailpipe emission standards in the US. In 1970, California's clean air efforts were given extra support with the federal Clean Air Act, as the federal government gave California special permission for stricter standards to address the pollution concerns, as the state had the worst air quality in the nation.

CARB's work entailed forming partnerships between state, local, and federal government, academia, and industry to generate policy, technology, and consumer-behavior solutions to smog, and to cleaner air more generally. Air smog alerts went from 148 in 1970 to zero alerts in 2000. As smog levels have been greatly reduced, the newer focus is on Greenhouse Gas emissions and on PM2.5. This shift in focus began in the early to mid 2000's. the Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 was signed by Schwarzenegger, to initiate this new focus for CARB.

The California Air Resources Board is one of six boards, departments, and offices under the umbrella of the California Environmental Protection Agency. CARB describes it's mission as being: "to promote and protect public health, welfare, and ecological resources through effective reduction of air pollutants while recognizing and considering effects on the economy. CARB is the lead agency for climate change programs and oversees all air pollution control efforts in California to attain and maintain health-based air quality standards."

"CARB is the primary state agency responsible for actions to protect public health from the harmful effects of air pollution. From guiding the activities of 35 local air pollution control districts, to leading our states efforts to address global climate change, the CARB has pioneered many of the approaches now used worldwide to address air quality problems."

Given that their entire focus in on air pollution, CARB has numerous programs that work towards different aspects of distaster and environmental justice. On their page describing their work, CARB highlights three current "topics" of focus and three current "programs. These topics include health, zero-emission transportation systems, and environmental justice. Under health, CARB has resurces for the public to understand the health risks posed by pollution. They also have resources and information about how you can better protect yourself. Lastly, CARB also discusses their work to assess and set outdoor air quality standards that "set air pollutant levels that can be present outdoors without harming the public's health." Under Zero-Emission Transportation, CARB lists current regulations on tailpipe emissions for cars, motorcycles, and heavy duty trucks, as well information on zero-emission transportations options and incentives for EV purchases. Under Environmental Justice, CARB Links to resources and information available on their Community Air Grant program, which "provide[s] support for community-based organizations to participate in the AB 617 process, and to build capacity to become active partners with government to identify, evaluate, and ultimately reduce air pollution and exposure to harmful emissions in their communities." They also link to their Community Air Protection Program,  Environmental Justice Advisory Committee, and Environmental Justice Blog.

CARB is funded by the State of California.