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[ Recorded presentation ] Recorded presentation

Central Valley Air Quality coalition (CVAQ): Working for environmental justice in California's San Joaquin Valley (MAHA)

David Pepper, MD, Steven and Michele Kirsch Foundation, Medical Advocates for Healthy Air, 60 S. Market St., Suite 1000, San Jose, CA 95113, 408-278-2278, mvanscherrenburg@kirschfoundation.org

Medical Advocates for Healthy Air (MAHA), a member of the Central Valley Air Quality coalition (CVAQ), will articulate the complex conditions that contribute to the poor air quality in the San Joaquin Valley, and will present research conducted on the correlation between air quality and school absenteeism due to asthma attacks. California's San Joaquin Valley, the state's agricultural heartland, is host to a unique concentration of environmental health risks from air pollution, including pesticides, dust from plowed fields, smoke from agricultural burning, diesel emissions, and urban air pollution, among other sources. It shares the distinction of having the worst air quality in the nation with the Los Angeles area, with asthma and disease rates at epidemic proportions. CVAQ is a diverse group of organizations and individuals – from premier environmental organizations to grassroots communities of color – with the shared goal of cleaning up the Valley's air, and comprises more than 120 members representing 55 organizations with environmental, public health, community, and environmental justice concerns. CVAQ is an excellent example of how a coalition – operating in a politically conservative and environmentally hostile region – can add up to more than the sum of its parts.

Learning Objectives:

  • At the conclusion of this session, participants will be able to

    Keywords: Environmental Health, Air Pollutants

    Presenting author's disclosure statement:

    Any relevant financial relationships? No

    [ Recorded presentation ] Recorded presentation

    Advocacy for Improved Air Quality-A Community Environmental Justice Perspective

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