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Northern SLO County ranked nation’s smoggiest small metropolitan area

September 22, 2011

Environment America ranked San Luis Obispo, Atascadero and Paso Robles as the nation’s smoggiest small metropolitan area–an area with a population of less than 250,000–in a report released Wednesday. [KSBY]

Overall, the area was ranked number 17 of the nation’s smoggiest places to live.

“I think that any person looking up into the sky today would say air quality is good, but we do have some hot spots in certain locales,” Larry Allen, the executive director of the Air Pollution Control District told KSBY.

Allen said the Red Hills and Carrisa Plains areas often see the highest levels of ozone in the state because of pollution from the San Joaquin Valley.


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YES! Cause we all know air pollution stops at county lines and heeds lines on maps.


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I’m calling BS!!!!


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SLO County also rated by Lung Association:


– 11th WORST for Ozone in 2011


– 1st CLEANEST in country for Particulate pollution in 2011


Yes, that’s CLEANEST for particulate pollution (you’ve heard of the “dust” thing?) So, what is the air district doing about the WORST IN THE NATION ozone problem while going on a rampage about being the CLEANEST for particulate dust??


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I meant to tell you that I ran across a document today prepared by Conoco Phillips. You can locate the report by googling : Conoco Phillips Santa Maria Refinery (dated 8/2011). Take a look at Section 4-1-9. If you aren’t already aware of their “feel good ” self serving ER reports, I think you’ll want to be familiar. This is a compilation detailing local environmental research findings while bolstering their BMP standards etc. They offer some interesting “opinions” passed off as fact, regarding the Oceano Dunes, PM10, off roading, the disturbance of the dunes protective crust …. etc.


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Be careful what you call “feel good” and “self serving” — the DEIR was created by the SLO Air Pollution Control District, not ConocoPhillips.


The DEIR creates a mechanism for a big time money grab by SLO APCD (same as Oceano Dunes). So, yes, it is self serving!


SLO APCD will never close the dunes or ConocoPhillips. They need the money to support their salary-heavy budget. Only 3 people at their office make under $100K compensation, and they are getting a RETROACTIVE raise next Wednesday if the Board approves it.


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Ding ding ding.. There seems to be nothing getting done in government anymore that isn’t some kind of money grab.. Oh of course, that’s somewhat of a cliche when talking about government, but this is something different. This isn’t about government taking our money o do whatever it wants to do with. This is about individuals within the government framing *everything * they do as a way to increase their pay.


Safe Streets in Paso? Ha! Try this instead – > cops not getting enough overtime in Paso applying for grant money to fund overtime hours doing time-consuming “crime fighting techniques” all proven to be ineffective, but requiring lots of man-hours.


Cops in SLO need a little extra cash? Get it while the getting is still good and put some more federal grant money in your pockets by running an illegal checkpoint. Illegal becaus they didn’t do a single DUI test, which the Attorney General considers to imply that the real purpose of the checkpoint was checking for licensing suspensions/issues, which is not legal under CA law


Sheriff deputies need more money to buy boats and ATVs for recreation? NO problem, partner with the feds on a raid of an “alleged drug dealer” (confirmed only by a crackhead on a plea bargainm and even if the guy isn’t convicted, you can still seize his assets.


And here people thought these “civil servants” were doing the things implied by the fancy slogans.


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Believe it or not, they have to be careful not to bust too many DUI drivers at checkpoints.


Seriously, the argument for DUI checkpoints only “squeezed” past the Supreme Court because checkpoints were said to be about discouraging drinking and driving and were not for the purpose of catching DUI drivers. That is why the LEO are required to provide the public with advanced notice of when and where there will be a check point. They also are required to set up checkpoints where an alternate route is available, allowing a citizen access to an alternative route prior to approaching a checkpoint, in the event that the citizen “chooses” not to participate! The checkpoint is only “supposedly” there to deter the public from driving UI.


The SC absolutely stated that checkpoints are in conflict with a US Citizens Constitutional rights unless these rules are adhered to by all LE. Also the LE are not legally allowed to randomly pick and choose who they will question. They are required to follow a set pattern that is established prior to the first stop (every 2 cars, every 3 cars only white cars).


Now of course we all know that if we elect to take the detour when we approach the checkpoint, a LEO will follow us and violate our rights! No doubt if you look fishy, they forget that they are stopping every 4th car and not every 3rd car. Of course, if you do JUST SO HAPPEN to smell like alcohol, then it is their duty to further investigate. Bottom line. if they bust too many DUI’s at checkpoints, it could serve to prove that the checkpoints are not working as a DETERRENT but as rather working as a violation of the citizens rights!!


I’m serious, there is a major group keeping track of DUI’s arrested through check points so they can argue the statistics back to the SC! Oregon has already banned checkpoints.


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Leave it to Cindy and mkaney to distort facts and just palin get their facts wrong. Stop ranting on issues you know nothing about, or do some of your own research instead of following the lead lemming. The statement that cops have to be “careful not to bust too many DUI’s at checkpoints” is absurd. The whole point of checkpoints is education, deterence, and to catch DUI’s. The “rules” on DUI checkpoints have been put in place because peope that get caught in them complain that it was not fair and that they should have been warned/alternate route, etc. How about don’t drink and drive.

mkaney, you (again) have no idea about Paso PD and the overtime you claim to know about. Paso cops are getting ZERO overtime for Safe Streets. Other departments are coming in to Paso. There is overtime for Paso PD because the PR CIty Council has allowed the force to drop to bare bones levels. If the City Council would hire police to get to a point where they could be proactive and go after the problems instead of going call to call to call, then there would not be as much of an issue. Point the finger at PR City Council who created this mess in Paso. And there is ZERO grant money invovled.


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Don’t taze me bro..


JK, obviously you’re a cop, I couldn’t resist.


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“The “rules” on DUI checkpoints have been put in place because people that get caught in them complain………….”


Well I agree that the requirements for conducting checkpoints are in place and uniform throughout the state because people complained. Who do you think they complained to and who do you think imposed the safeguards thus enacting them into law? The POA?


I have to agree that when the checkpoints don’t produce any DUI arrests, it’s because no drunks passed through them or they were not in sequence to be scrutinized. Regardless, I can assure you that if check points regularly produced a high number of DUI arrests, it would open the door (it’s a swinging door) to challenge the Supreme Court ruling that DUI checkpoints do not anticipate or intend to identify DUI citizens but rather to deter it.


P.S. I already have done my homework, I suggest you do yours …


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We need some way to get drunk drivers and people with no driver’s license off the road. What do you suggest that would be “fair”?


Go up to Solidad if you want to see what it’s like with people backing up in parking lots with cars behind them and other tricks that people with no driver’s training are doing on the roads. What about the drunk driver with no license that made a u turn on Highway 99, or the El Salvadorian who killed three people on 46 who didn’t know you weren’t supposed to drive after drinking all night.


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Good question. I’m torn because I absolutely don’t want to give up any of my rights. Giving up ones rights is just like anything else, you give an inch and they take a mile. I have heard of behavior, particularly where the LEO take advantage of the “probable cause” clause that has made my head spin on more than one occasion.


I know we needed to afford “our protectors” that option ( probable cause) because the criminals had too many rights and when the LEO knew they had a “bad guy” in front of them, their hands were often tied to search for the guns and drugs in the car, etc. BUT- like I said, like anything else, when we give an inch, they take a mile.


There is a fine line when it comes to the cost of our freedoms. Personally, I believe that only men and woman of the HIGHEST, integrity, trust and honor should qualify to serve in LE (and it’s factions). I would be willing to pay more for it.


A case point is Cramer, (one of many points). The APD should have immediately arrested him just like any other citizen, in fact he should be held to a higher standard. He should also never be allowed on the streets as a member of LE again. That is the kind of security that I would be willing to pay more for.


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This whole story is so misleading, the way it is originally worded, you would think SLO County is SoCal north. Larry Allen puts it all in pespective, yes, there is some smog in certain areas of the county, but guess what, it is NOT generated here, rather over in the central valley, which is one of the fllthiest environments on the planet.

Peace


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So why aren’t the communities ie Kettleman City etc. all way ahead of the north county regarding smog.? I agree that the central valley is one of the filthiest environments. So those communities in the valley should top the list, the pollution hits them at a stronger condensed strength before it gets here. There are many communities in the valley that should be way worse than we are. I feel that this study is flawed and if Larry A. is responsible for reporting the figures then it’s no wonder that this study is flawed.


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There is actually quite a bit a data about our air quality. Atascadero has a low lying ozone problem during the hot weather and it blows down into the valley (SLO) where it sort of sits for a while. Also because SLO is situated in a valley, the smog settles from all the traffic in that little city.


When I got angry at that lady the other day for bitching because she saw somebody that was “breaking the law” ( smoking in SLO) I didn’t tell her to go lobby to ban cars from down town SLO for nothing. The exhaust is 10 times more toxic, and you were right, I was in a bad mood.


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The problem is that after the lies regarding Larry Allan, I don’t feel that we can trust the data. It might be right but it just doesn’t make sense to me. You are right about the valley thing that’s I why I brought up cities in the most polluted valleys. It seems as if the smaller cities in the Inland Empire should be before us, Banning, Coachella, Colton etc, that is a nasty nasty valley. If you’ve ever been to Riverside or San Bernardino then you’ll know what I mean. San Bernardino and Riverside were at one time and perhaps now rated as the most polluted cities in the US by the EPA and they are in a valley full of little communities. Then we have the San Joaquin Valley, Los Banos, Kettleman City etc.. I’m not sure if Merced is small enough to be on thier list but there are plenty of little towns that I’ve been though that seem worse. Oh well that’s just my opinion.


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Hold on to your pants everyone, this is just the beginning of a new ploy for some kind of regulation and stealing more money out of taxpayer pockets.


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What is very interesting is that in the late 1990’s the APCD mandated that there be no more “door yard” burning in the unincorporated areas of the county to clean up our air quality. Only AG operations can openly burn today.

Yet, since that time the air quality has gotten worse?

Maybe, they don’t make any connection to the adjoining valleys to the east, north and south with far larger populations driving and far more industry than we have here in SLO county.


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Well if Larry Allen says it then it must be so ;-)


When I think of all the small areas that I’ve been to it seems hard to believe that the No. County ranks so high. There must be dozens of little communities in the SJ Valley alone that rate higher. I find this a bit hard to believe. The Inland Empire valley area has several little communities, many of them are small, that valley is horrible.


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What? No blame placed on OHVs at the Dunes?? Wait for it…it is no doubt coming…


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Allow me Danika….here it is SLO county, the so called paradise, an environmentally friendly place where we all breathe gold dust cause were so bitchen, yet it survives on tourist dollars brought to our county after a several hour trip in any direction compliments of hundreds of jacked up,hot rodded, over fueling, smoking like a Choo Choo train, diesel pickup piles of testosterone redneck crap pulling a 10,000 pound 40′ second home on wheels cause we cant live without this stuff, loaded with more pollutant spewing dune destroying vehicles operated by disrespectful out of town yahoos. Naturally after a hard day of partying and throwing their trash in the sand (beach clean up day) and unburned pallets on the side of the road (anywhere Oceano) many make the pilgrimage to one or more of the counties finest wineries where one can get drunk in the name of “living the fine life” then hop back into that environmentally friendly truck and head home across blood alley (hwy 46) in hopes of maintaining coherency for the drive

That do the trick…LOL?


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Oh, yeah! Makes me wanna hitch on up, ride over to Pismo and do a few “roosters”…LOL!


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If you haven’t been on it recently, Highway 46 is being transformed from Hwy. 101 to Hwy. 5. Most of it is now four lanes or currently under construction to become four lanes. Many people do not realize that 46 in Kern County is under construction for four lanes from 5 to the SLO/Kern County line because only the SLO County construction of Hwy. 46 is usually reported in the local media.


As far as your description of users of the Oceano Dunes you clearly are a former 1960’s hippie era person whose anger, that in 2011 everybody does not think like you, has turned you into a bigoted person. Very sad.


As far as your description of users of the Oceano Dunes you clearly are a former 1960’s hippie era person whose anger has turned you into a bigotted person. Very sad.


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So many of these areas in north county inherit the ozone created somewhere else. That doesn’t make them pollution generators, just recipients.


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Psssst….I don’t think you were supposed to figure that out…


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Yep. Surrounding areas like Visalia/Tulare/Porterville (78 smog days) and Fresno (42 smog days) are in the list’s top 10. On page 16 of the report it shows that in 2010, SLO/A-town/PR had ONLY 17 smog days vs. 110 smog days for #1 on the list…you guessed it…Riverside/San Bernardino..


Yet again, the headline’s scarier than the actual facts.


365 minus 17= 348 of fresh, clean SLO county air!


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Why don’t we move our eastern sensors to the other side of the Kern county line? Then they can take the blame for their own smog.


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Most people have never really lived in heavy smog day after day. Try the mid 50’s in San Fernando Valley (over the hill from LA). The smog was so thick you couldn’t take a deep breath without feeling that burning sensation in your lungs. You could barely see to the end of the street and the sun had this brown glow about it. We counted ourselves lucky if the wind would come up and blow the junk away and give us a couple days where we could see a blue sky. Thank God we moved out of there to a place with clean air in the late 50’s.


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