Yay for Los Angeles! The City of Angels no longer holds the dubious title of the Sootiest City in the United States. That honor is now held by Pittsburgh (though LA is still the most polluted by other measures).The American Lung Association’s State of The Air 2008 report ranked metropolitan areas according to their ozone, year round and short-term particle pollution.
The most polluted cities, according to the short-term particle pollution measure are:
1. Pittsburgh - New Castle, PA
2. Los Angeles - Long Beach - Riverside, CA
3. Fresno - Madera, CA
4. Bakersfield, CA
5. Birmingham - Hoover - Cullman, AL
6. Logan, UT - ID
7. Salt Lake City - Ogden - Clearfield, UT
8. Sacramento - Arden - Arcade - Yuba City, CA - NV
9. Detroit - Warren - Flint, MI
10. Washington - Baltimore - Northern Virginia, DC - MD - VA - WV
The most polluted cities, by year-round particle pollution:
1. Los Angeles - Long Beach - Riverside, CA
2. Pittsburgh - New Castle, PA
3. Bakersfield, CA
4. Birmingham - Hoover - Cullman, AL
5. Visalia - Porterville, CA
6. Atlanta - Sandy Springs - Gainesville, GA - AL
7. Cincinnati - Middletown - Wilmington, OH - KY - IN
8. Fresno - Madera, CA
8. Hanford - Corcoran, CA
8. Detroit - Warren - Flint, MI
8. Cleveland - Akron - Elyria, OH
The most polluted cities, by ozone pollution:
1. Los Angeles - Long Beach - Riverside, CA
2. Bakersfield, CA
3. Visalia - Porterville, CA
4. Houston - Baytown - Huntsville, TX
5. Fresno - Madera, CA
6. Sacramento - Arden - Arcade - Yuba City, CA - NV
7. Dallas - Fort Worth, TX
8. New York - Newark - Bridgeport, NY - NJ - CT - PA
9. Washington - Baltimore - Northern Virginia, DC - MD - VA - WV
10. Baton Rouge - Pierre Part, LA
Isn’t it amazing that for all its environmental-consciousness, California leads the nation in having the most polluted cities?