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	Air Quality Land Use Handbook
	Editor's note: As Elk Grove continues to grow it may be useful to consider the possible health effects of locating developments near sources of air pollution.
	The Air Resources Board's (ARB) has developed an Air Quality and Land Use Handbook: A Community Health Perspective (Handbook). The Handbook is intended to serve as a general reference guide for evaluating and reducing air pollution impacts associated with new projects that go through the land use decision-making process.
	The Air Resources Board's (ARB) primary goal in developing this document is to provide information that will help keep California's children and other vulnerable populations out of harm's way with respect to nearby sources of air pollution. Recent air pollution studies have shown an association between respiratory and other non-cancer health effects and proximity to high traffic roadways. Other studies have shown that diesel exhaust and other cancer-causing chemicals emitted from cars and trucks are responsible for much of the overall cancer risk from airborne toxics in California. Also, ARB community health risk assessments and regulatory programs have produced important air quality information about certain types of facilities that should be considered when siting new residences, schools, day care centers, playgrounds, and medical facilities (i.e., sensitive land uses). Sensitive land uses deserve special attention because children, pregnant women, the elderly, and those with existing health problems are especially vulnerable to the non-cancer effects of air pollution.
	The Handbook provides specific recommendations regarding the siting of new sensitive land uses near freeways, distribution centers, rail yards, ports, refineries, chrome plating facilities, dry cleaners, and gasoline dispensing facilities. This list consists of polluting source categories that we have evaluated from the standpoint of proximity. It is based on available information and reflects ARB's primary areas of jurisdiction - mobile sources and toxic air contaminants. A key air pollutant common to many of these sources is particulate matter from diesel engines. Diesel particulate matter (diesel PM) is a carcinogen identified by ARB as a toxic air contaminant and contributes to particulate pollution statewide.
	The Handbook also describes the air quality-land use relationship, and the roles and responsibilities of State and local agencies in the land use decision-making process, including the role of school districts. It discusses concepts and general approaches for evaluating and addressing site-specific and cumulative air pollution impacts. It also identifies evaluation and mapping tools that the ARB is developing and actions that it is taking to reduce community-level air pollution impacts within its authority. Finally, the Handbook provides a menu of approaches that are geared to elicit more public involvement in the decision-making process as well as options to consider in making all of California's communities a healthier place to live.
	In addition to source specific recommendations, we also encourage land use agencies to use their planning processes to ensure the appropriate separation of industrial facilities and sensitive land uses. While we provide some suggestions, how to best achieve that goal is a local issue. In the development of these guidelines, we received valuable input from local government about the spectrum of issues that must be considered in the land use planning process. This includes addressing housing and transportation needs, the benefits of urban infill, community economic development priorities, and other quality of life issues. All of these factors are important considerations. We believe that with careful evaluation, meeting these priorities can be compatible with protecting the health of individuals at the neighborhood level. One suggestion for achieving this goal is more communication between air agencies and land use planners. Local air districts are an important resource that should be consulted regarding sources of air pollution in their jurisdictions. ARB staff will also continue to provide updated technical information as it becomes available.
	In developing the recommendations, our first consideration was the adequacy of the data available for an air pollution source category. Using that data, we assessed whether we could reasonably characterize the relative exposure and health risk from a proximity standpoint. That screening provided the list of air pollution sources that we were able to address with specific recommendations. We also considered the practical implications of making hard and fast recommendations where the potential impact area is large, emissions will be reduced with time, and air agencies are in the process of looking at options for additional emission control. In the end, we tailored our recommendations to minimize the highest exposures for each source category independently. Due to the large variability in relative risk in the source categories, we chose not to apply a uniform, quantified risk threshold as is typically done in air quality permitting programs. Instead, because these guidelines are not regulatory or binding on local agencies, we took a more qualitative approach in developing the distance-based recommendations.
	Where possible, we recommend a minimum separation between a new sensitive land use and known air pollution risks. In other cases, we acknowledge that the existing health risk is too high in a relatively large area, that air agencies are working to reduce that risk, and that in the meantime, we recommend keeping new sensitive land uses out of the highest exposure areas. However, it is critical to note that our implied identification of the high exposure areas for these sources does not mean that the risk in the remaining impact area is insignificant. Rather, we hope this document will bring further attention to the potential health risk throughout the impact area and help garner support for our ongoing efforts to reduce health risk associated with air pollution sources. Areas downwind of major ports, rail yards, and other inter-modal transportation facilities are prime examples.
	We developed these recommendations as a means to share important public health information. The underlying data are publicly available and referenced in the Handbook. We also describe our rationale and the factors considered in developing each recommendation, including data limitations and uncertainties. These recommendations are advisory and should not be interpreted as defined "buffer zones." We recognize the opportunity for more detailed site-specific analyses always exists, and that there is no "one size fits all" solution to land use planning.
	As California continues to grow, we collectively have the opportunity to use all the information at hand to avoid siting scenarios that may pose a health risk. We encourage land use agencies to apply these recommendations and work more closely with air agencies. We also hope that this document will help educate a wider audience about the value of preventative action to reduce environmental exposures to air pollution.
	This article was part of a staff report in support of a recommendation that the Air Resources Board adopt the Handbook, which it did.
	The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not represent those of the Elk Grove Insider or any other entity.
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