http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/airqualityguy/29974 Air District Not Doing Job &nbsp; We had promises of steady and continued improvement two years ago.&nbsp; We also had promises of attainment of the federal health standard by 2024 which was too long in many peoples' minds.&nbsp; They didn't tell us our air would actually get worse before it got better.&nbsp; How does a public health agency like our air district get away with this crap?&nbsp; What part of our economy is more important than our health? Check out the chart for June and the first part of July.&nbsp; Our ozone readings are 8% worse than the past couple years.&nbsp;&nbsp; Just like our recent fall and winter particulate problems were worse.&nbsp; The smoke is bad enough but this ozone problem has nothing to do with the smoke.&nbsp; It is a combination of heat, stagnant air, NOX from vehicles and volatile organic compounds (number one source: dairies).&nbsp; Our air would still be hazy from the first two ingredients but it is deadly after mixing in the last two. &nbsp; Air District Not Doing Job &nbsp; We had promises of steady and continued improvement two years ago.&nbsp; We also had promises of attainment of the federal health standard by 2024 which was too long in many peoples' minds.&nbsp; They didn't tell us our air would actually get worse before it got better.&nbsp; How does a public health agency like our air district get away with this crap?&nbsp; What part of our economy is more important than our health? Check out the chart for June and the first part of July.&nbsp; Our ozone readings are 8% worse than the past couple years.&nbsp;&nbsp; Just like our recent fall and winter particulate problems were worse.&nbsp; The smoke is bad enough but this ozone problem has nothing to do with the smoke.&nbsp; It is a combination of heat, stagnant air, NOX from vehicles and volatile organic compounds (number one source: dairies).&nbsp; Our air would still be hazy from the first two ingredients but it is deadly after mixing in the last two. &nbsp; en-us <p>The farmers and the pollution they either directly (pollution from cows, plants, and pesticides) or indirectly (big rigs and other machinery) cause rule this valley. Breathing quality air comes in a distant second to the $$$ made by the farmers and the bureaucrats they support. Money has, and always will, win out over the health concerns of the average citizen.</p> http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/airqualityguy/29974/#c_273164 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/airqualityguy/29974/#c_273164 <p>The farmers and the pollution they either directly (pollution from cows, plants, and pesticides) or indirectly (big rigs and other machinery) cause rule this valley. Breathing quality air comes in a distant second to the $$$ made by the farmers and the bureaucrats they support. Money has, and always will, win out over the health concerns of the average citizen.</p> <p>Thanks for the charts! The Air District is just another toothless bureaucratic group that gets paid to have their message ignored. The penalties of failure are decreased revenues from the state and feds. The people who pollute could care less. The elected guys who govern here get their money from the polluters to run and keep their offices. Special interest money is always preffered over federal and state grant money, because SI money goes directly to the politicians. Money and improvements for working people is off the priority schedule.</p> <p>You can see this play itself out everyday in the news with the tremendous increases in bacterial infections&nbsp; from airborne pathogens.&nbsp; There is virtually no government oversight into the processing and slaughterhouse world. When was the last time you read about the FDA making a bust before disease infected a bunch of people. It just does not happen. It is getting to the point right now that our government has to bully other nations into importing our damaged and diseased livestock. We have bovine tuberculosis just a hundred miles north of Bakersfield, and our government elects not to tell us which dairy and/or cattle ranch is involved. Is this for protection of the citizens, or just more protection for big money interests at the citizens' expense?</p> <p>I think most people get the idea&nbsp; who our government prefers to protect.</p> http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/airqualityguy/29974/#c_273165 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/airqualityguy/29974/#c_273165 <p>Thanks for the charts! The Air District is just another toothless bureaucratic group that gets paid to have their message ignored. The penalties of failure are decreased revenues from the state and feds. The people who pollute could care less. The elected guys who govern here get their money from the polluters to run and keep their offices. Special interest money is always preffered over federal and state grant money, because SI money goes directly to the politicians. Money and improvements for working people is off the priority schedule.</p> <p>You can see this play itself out everyday in the news with the tremendous increases in bacterial infections&nbsp; from airborne pathogens.&nbsp; There is virtually no government oversight into the processing and slaughterhouse world. When was the last time you read about the FDA making a bust before disease infected a bunch of people. It just does not happen. It is getting to the point right now that our government has to bully other nations into importing our damaged and diseased livestock. We have bovine tuberculosis just a hundred miles north of Bakersfield, and our government elects not to tell us which dairy and/or cattle ranch is involved. Is this for protection of the citizens, or just more protection for big money interests at the citizens' expense?</p> <p>I think most people get the idea&nbsp; who our government prefers to protect.</p>