Digging Up Trouble!

A health report released on December 6th by the Union of Concerned Scientists states the health impact in California related to emissions from diesel construction equipment.

Digging Up Trouble: The Health Risks of Construction Pollution

- Premature Deaths 1,132
- Respiratory Hospitalizations 669
- Cardiovascualr Hospitalizations 417
- Asthma and Other Lower Respiratory Symptoms 30,118
- Acute Bronchitis 2,494
- Lost Work Days 182,940
- Minor Restricted Activity Days 1,544,952
- School Absences 331,040

Total Annual Cost $9,140,480

From the report:

The impact of construction pollution on public health is greatest where
equipment and people mix, and 90 percent of the health and economic damage
occurs in California’s five most populous air basins:

- The South Coast air basin (which encompasses most of Los Angeles, Orange,
Riverside, and San Bernardino counties) ranks first with more than 700 premature
deaths and more than 1,000 hospitalizations for respiratory and cardiovascular
illness annually.

- The San Francisco Bay Area and San Diego follow, with more than 150 and 89
premature deaths, respectively, every year.

- The San Joaquin Valley and Sacramento Valley (the two largest air basins in
California’s Central Valley) round out the top five with 49 and 39 annual premature deaths, respectively.