Have you taken a look outside and seen (or felt) the recent poor quality in our region? I stayed home this holiday season and was devastated by the consecutive bad air days we had. Before going out for a run or hike, I would check out the Air Quality Index (AQI) and would often have to reconsider due to the poor air quality which in my area was often 100-150, Unhealthy for sensitive groups (You can find yours here). Even though I was on holiday, I couldn't help but think about how important our work in the Sierra Club is to set zero-emission standards for equipment outside and INSIDE our buildings.
The majority of the Southern California region is encompassed by the South Coast Air Quality Management District (AQMD) which suffers from some of the most polluted air in the country and has consistently failed to meet federal and state air quality standards for more than 30 years. Under federal law, regions that fail to meet these standards must develop comprehensive plans to cut pollution. The AQMD developed a plan where it identified the gas-burning equipment in residential and commercial buildings as a significant – but often overlooked – contributor to this air quality crisis. Burning gas in household appliances like furnaces and water heaters generates a range of pollutants that harm our health. In addition to harming health in its own right, NOx emissions from gas-burning equipment are also a precursor to ozone pollution – a major component of smog. These pollutants are responsible for significant health harms including respiratory and cardiovascular diseases, cognitive impairment, and premature death, with particularly severe impacts on communities of color.
The South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) –responsible for setting air quality standards for Los Angeles, Orange, San Bernardino, and Riverside Counties – will be voting on rules that will reduce nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions (which are extremely hazardous to our health) from residential and commercial furnaces and water heaters in our buildings. Combined, these rules will continue to help us achieve the emissions reductions we need to attain federal air quality standards, protect our communities from asthma and chronic illness, and meet our statewide climate goals. This is a HUGE opportunity to regulate these types of equipment, that will require replacement to zero-emission alternatives once your equipment or appliances break down and you go in to replace it in the upcoming years. Similar standards have passed in California, in the Bay Area Air Quality Management District.
However, Bizfed, some city chambers of commerce, and of course, Socal Gas have been mobilizing to oppose these rules. In December, I saw the most opposition from industry that I have seen in the past couple of years. Why is that? Despite overwhelming support from the community, climate, and environmental organizations and stakeholders, the opposition has become loud and organized their base. We saw Bizfed, and Socal Gas mobilize individuals to give comments to oppose these life-saving rules, many whose comments demonstrated they lacked a real understanding of what the rules will actually do. We have seen SoCal Gas deploy fear-mongering tactics at the statewide and local level, sharing false, or misrepresentations of local decarbonization and Clean Air rules. The California Public Utilities Commission has even fined SoCal Gas, the nation's biggest gas company $10 million for trying to block energy efficiency rules and local gas bans, actions critics say were inappropriately funded by ratepayer dollars and designed to subvert efforts to fight climate change.
I wish we were starting 2025 with brighter news. We have a bigger fight ahead of us and will not be deterred. On the upside, a majority of letters submitted to the AQMD is in support for the rules- even support from SoCal Edison and the Clean Power Alliance. If adopted, these health-protective standards would deliver the greatest emissions reductions of any air quality regulation the agency has issued in three decades. We will continue gaining support for these rules. Rules that impact all of us and ensure we are kicking gas out and making it history as we continue to work towards the clean, resilient, energy future we all deserve.
The Scale of the Problem:
- Methane gas-burning equipment in residential and commercial buildings in the South Coast Air Basin generates significant levels of smog and other air Pollution:
- Gas-burning equipment in residential and commercial buildings produces nearly half of the health-harming NOx emissions that fall under the South Coast AQMD’s direct authority and responsibility to control.
- Gas-burning equipment in residential and commercial buildings emits more NOx pollution than regional oil and gas production, refining, cement manufacturing, and power generation combined.
- Gas-burning equipment in residential and commercial buildings releases seven times more NOx pollution than the region’s power plants.
We will continue to organize and ensure that these life-saving rules are passed. I invite you to get involved in our campaign by:
- Signing this petition (and sharing it with family and friends)
- Joining our monthly Climate Action Committee Meetings
- Participating in one of our upcoming in-person advocacy actions.
