Nationwide, exhaust from diesel engines accounts for 78% of the
total added cancer risk in outdoor air from all hazardous air
pollutants combined, based on U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA) data, according to a new analysis on Environmental Defense's www.scorecard.org
website.
The analysis is based on a massive EPA study, which provides
detailed estimates of the levels of 41 top hazardous air pollutants
in every community in the U.S. EPA's previous version did not
include information on diesel particulate emissions.
"The dominance of diesel in the unhealthiness of our air is
a revelation," said David Roe, Environmental Defense senior
attorney. "It couldn't be seen before, only because studies
weren't trying to look for it." Scorecard.org
is able to translate quantities of hazardous air pollutants into
cancer risks, both nationally and at the local level. For any
locality, see: www.scorecard.org/env-releases/hap/community.tcl.
"The bad news is that cancer risks from air toxics are much
higher than the public has been told before. The good news is that a
great deal of the air toxics problem can by addressed by focusing on
just this one pollutant. Cutting diesel exhaust has to be priority
number one for everyone concerned about the health of our air."
Diesel's predominance leads to surprising results. For example,
supposedly clean San Francisco shows a risk level of 2,600
additional cancer cases per million, with 90% of the risk coming
from diesel emissions. The goal set in the Clean Air Act for air
toxics is a maximum of one additional case per million.
The air pollution comes both from diesel vehicles on the roads,
like trucks and buses, and from offroad equipment like bulldozers
and heavy construction machinery. "Offroad diesel equipment is
a big part of the problem that most people don't realize, and that
is long overdue for emission controls," Roe said.
Environmental Defense, a leading national nonprofit organization
based in New York, represents more than 300,000 members. Since 1967
we have linked science, economics, and law to create innovative,
equitable, and cost-effective solutions to the most urgent
environmental problems.
