Community fights back against bad air quality, helps in creating state plan

A series of local workshops on air quality in El Centro on Wednesday are giving residents a chance to fight back against bad air quality and its impact locally.

Concerned residents came together to help shape the tools that will enable them to fight for every breath they take.

Brittney Blanco, Comite Civico del Valle, said, ” It is an extremely serious problem. Unfortunately, we hold the rank of the highest asthma rate in all of California. ”

Blanco said there are over 23,000 people with thousand with asthma in the area.

Karen Magliano , California Air Resources Board, said, “Not only do we see impacts from asthma and other respiratory illnesses, but every day there’s more health research that identifies other kinds of air quality impacts, everything from cardiac issues to Alzheimer’s to low birth rate, even premature death.”

Residents met with local and state agencies to talk about existing and new tools, and to go over the first draft of an environmental plan, a project of Assembly Bill 617, sponsored by Assembly Member Eduardo Garcia.

A Brawley resident and activist known to most people as Johnny on Wheels said he brought a lot of questions to the event and felt satisfied with the responses he was getting from the agencies.

“What’s exciting for me is to be able to see each department and the different associations and be able to talk to them one on one,” Johnny said

Matt Desert, I.C. Air Pollution Control District, said, “We’re formulating a plan, a monitoring plan, a monitoring network to enhance what we already have, our air pollution concerns, as well as a report and a study, to say what direction we can go to further reduce emissions, reduce air pollution products or reduce the exposure time, educate the community as to what they can do better in their own lifestyles, their own daily activities.”

Christian Torres, Comite Civico del Valle, shared how their air quality monitoring efforts were paying off, giving the community much needed real-time information on air quality conditions.

“Depending on new concerns, new pollutants or new criteria that we want to measure, the community can voice their input and we might change monitors depending on that concern,” Torres said.

Blanco said it’s an uphill fight when it comes to stopping or at least lessening the effects of bad air quality, but she encouraged the community to use tools readily available. She said that with the state now listening more to the community, positive change was on its way to the area.

” We do have a website called IVAN [Identifying Violation Affecting Neighborhoods] at www.ivan-imperial.org. And we also now have a mobile app called IVAN COMMUNITY, ” Blanco said.

For more information, please visit www.ccvhealth.org.