AIR QUALITY FOR RESIDENTS

How to improve the air quality in your home

The South Coast Air Quality Management District (AQMD), the air pollution agency responsible for regulating stationary sources of air pollution in Southern California, offers four solutions to help Lake Forest residents to achieve clean air quality in their household or business. Please visit the South Coast AQMD website for more information (Link: https://www.aqmd.gov/home/programs/community).

1.       Certified residential water heaters. The South Coast AQMD provides a list of natural gas-fired water heaters compliant with the standards of nitrogen oxides emissions.

Link: https://www.aqmd.gov/home/rules-compliance/rules/support-documents/rule-1121

2.       Low-VOC paints. To reduce volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions from traditional paint coatings, the South Coast AQMD provides a list of paint manufacturers that have Low-VOC paint coatings.

Link: https://www.aqmd.gov/home/rules-compliance/compliance/vocs/architectural-coatings/super-compliant-coatings

3.       Clean solvents. To reduce volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions, the South Coast AQMD provides a list of cleaning products that have been certified to comply with the State VOC requirements.

Link: https://www.aqmd.gov/home/programs/business/business-detail?title=certified-products#Solvent%20Products

4.       Home Improvement supplies. To minimize chemical harm to the environment, the South Coast AQMD offers a list of suppliers and manufacturers for residents to utilize water-based cleaning materials and equipment.

 

Link: https://www.aqmd.gov/home/programs/business/business-detail?title=low-voc-cleaning-materials-equipment-list&parent=other-low-voc-products

 

Additional Programs

Here are additional programs that provides ideas to improve the quality of air in your home and neighborhood:

Check Before You Burn

From November through the end of February, residents are asked to check their fireplace before burning wood to limit emissions of fine particulate matter (PM2.5). A No-Burn Day is a 24-hour ban on wood-burning in residential fireplaces, stoves or outdoor fire pits in the South Coast Air Basin, where the City of Lake Forest is located. South Coast AQMD forecasters call for residential No-Burn Days when PM2.5 is expected to reach Unhealthy levels due to air emissions and stagnant weather conditions.

Link: https://www.aqmd.gov/home/programs/community/community-detail?title=check-before-you-burn

Electric Lawn and Garden Equipment

South Coast AQMD has a program that help clean the air through the replacement of gasoline-powered residential lawn mowers available to all eligible participants who reside within the City of Lake Forest:

The Residential Electric Lawn Mower Rebate Program is available for eligible residents to receive a rebate of up to $250 with the purchase of a cordless, battery-electric lawn mower. An operable, gasoline powered lawn mower must be scrapped in order to be eligible for the rebate.

Link: https://www.aqmd.gov/home/programs/community/electric-lawn-and-garden-programs

Non-Toxic Dry Cleaners

List of professional cleaners in the South Coast AQMD region, including in Orange County, that use non-perchloroethylene alternative technologies. Some of these cleaners may also be using PERC (Perchloroethylne) machines, which is type of dry-cleaning machine used to clean clothes that typically involves little or no use of water. Cleaners using a non-perc alternative that are not listed may contact the Small Business Assistance Team to request inclusion in the list.

Link: https://www.aqmd.gov/home/programs/community/community-detail?title=non-toxic-dry-cleaners

Participation

South Coast AQMD strongly encourages public participation as vital to developing sound air quality policies. By getting involved, individuals have greater impact on clean air policy and the decision-making process. Joining forces with South Coast AQMD also helps people learn about air pollution risks to which they are exposed, and how to minimize exposure. To increase community access and involvement in air quality issues, the following resources are available:

·         The Air Quality Complaint line, 1-800-CUT-SMOG, for individuals to file complaints about

o   smoking vehicles

o   bad odors

o   fumes

o   exhaust or soot from nearby businesses or facilities

o   dust from construction sites

o   extended periods of idling by trucks, trains or other equipment

o   chemical particles or droplets or other evidence of spraying from a nearby business

·         Publications and Videos

·         Clean Air Choice Program

·         Public Records Requests, etc.

To get involved, please visit the South Coast AQMD’s website.

Link:  https://www.aqmd.gov/home/programs/community/community-detail?title=participation

CalAdapt

Cal-Adapt provides the public, researchers, government agencies and industry stakeholders with essential data & tools for climate adaptation planning, building resiliency, and fostering community engagement. Here are some of the tools available: Link: https://cal-adapt.org/

·         Local Climate Change Snapshot tool provides quick sense of climate impacts in your region.

·         Annual Averages tool provides projected changes in annual average Maximum Temperature, Minimum Temperature and Precipitation through end of this century for California.

·         Extreme Weather tool provides extreme temperatures and wind speed for past weather and present day.

·         Wildfire tool explores wildfire scenario projections for area burned and estimated decadal wildfire probabilities for California.

·         Extreme Precipitation Events explore what an extreme precipitation event looks like by providing estimates of intensity and frequency of extreme precipitation events.

·         Extreme Heat Days and Warm Nights informs the public about how the frequency and timing of extreme heat days and warm nights is expected to change under different emission scenarios for your location.