Fresno needs better alert system when Valley air pollution becomes a health risk
You can be watching NFL football on a Sunday morning when the action gets interrupted by a horrible sequence of beeps and screeches. Then a voice comes over your TV warning of an impending thunderstorm near Porterville.
Or you can wake up to an Amber Alert on your cell phone because a girl was abducted in Manteca.
These are examples of the Emergency Alert System, used by authorities to (in the words of the Federal Communications Commission) “to deliver important emergency information … to affected communities.”
But when breathing the air in Fresno and the San Joaquin Valley suddenly becomes a health risk, as was the case Dec. 10 and in late October, your TV viewing doesn’t get interrupted and very few cell phones receive notifications of the danger.
That has to change, and it has to change now. One preventable asthma attack or emergency room visit is one too many.
For a moment, let’s set aside the debate over why the Valley is one of the nation’s dirtiest air basins. Topography, semi-trucks on Highway 99, freight trains, industrial emissions, wildfires, agriculture, dairy cattle, residential fireplaces, commercial charbroilers, winds blowing from the Bay Area and China — for this discussion it really doesn’t matter.
What matters is the tepid response, by the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District and public health officials, when ozone or particulates soar to levels that make it hazardous to breathe outdoors.
In short, they’re not doing nearly enough to warn us.
Oh, sure. You can check any number of websites (such as airnow.gov or valleyair.org) to see that day’s Air Quality Index or what the forecast is for tomorrow. Or you can sign up for Real-Time Air Advisory Network alerts delivered via text message or email.
Problem is, very few people actually do these things. So when the air turns foul, most of the public remains blissfully unaware of the potential threat to their health.
‘They don’t reach many people’
“That’s the problem with most of the initiatives the Valley Air District has undertaken,” said Susana Ramirez, a UC Merced associate professor who co-authored a recent study examining the effectiveness of communication strategies regarding air pollution.
“They don’t reach many people, and they for sure don’t reach the folks who are least likely to be looking for information and yet most likely to suffer from the harms of poor air quality.”
Utilizing the Emergency Alert System for sudden air pollution spikes would be a much more effective way of disseminating that information.
If we can issue alerts for thunderstorms and child abductions, why can’t we do it for a situation that impacts everyone living and breathing in the Valley? Air pollution doesn’t spare anyone.
Before proceeding, let me reinforce my view that people are ultimately responsible for their own well-being. When the air outside is brown enough to see or smoky enough to smell, no one should need the government telling them it’s not healthy to be outdoors.
“If people smell smoke, they’re in a dangerous air pollution environment,” said Dr. Ken Bird, health officer for Fresno County. “That cannot be emphasized enough.”
Unfortunately, as we’ve seen, this brand of common sense isn’t as common as it should be.
I have a few theories as to why. But, as was the case regarding the sources of Valley air pollution, they’re not particularly relevant to this discussion. Nor is it particularly relevant that the air district failed to anticipate the weather conditions that led to last week’s spike. Forecasting is an inexact science.
This is about what happens once the genie gets out of the bottle.
Emergency Alert System ‘merits discussion’
The Emergency Alert System, formerly known as the Emergency Broadcast System, was designed as a way for the president to address the country in the event of a national emergency. (Think Cold War and nuclear attacks.)
These days, however, the system is being utilized more and more by local agencies to warn the public about threats closer to their homes. I can’t think of any reason why air pollution spikes should not be among them. Sure, you might not die from breathing dirty air as quickly as you would getting burnt to a crisp by a forest fire. But study after study has shown the deleterious, long-term effects.
If that’s not a public health concern, I don’t know what is.
“I think it’s an intriguing question … and something that merits discussion,” said David Pomaville, Fresno County director of public health.
“We certainly have seen more of these types of dust events and high-wind events, and we certainly have wildfire threats that are continuing. Maybe we do need to look at doing more mass notification.”
What government agency makes that decision? According to several people I spoke to, the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office has the ultimate local authority over the Emergency Alert System “send” button.
However, sheriff’s spokesman Tony Botti indicated that if a county health official requested an alert over air quality, they would agree to send it. (The sheriff’s department also operates its own alert system, the Everbridge Mass Notification Service. However, the public must sign up to receive alerts in most cases.)
Air pollution is a public health emergency
Besides the initial warning, most Emergency Alert System messages are accompanied by specific recommended actions that are easy to understand.
In the case of an air pollution event, “Stay Indoors” is a whole lot more straightforward than “Check Before You Burn.”
Huh? Check what?
Pomaville cautioned that mass emergency alerts are intended for natural disasters and “substantial public health emergencies.” And because of its relatively short duration, last week’s episode probably would not have qualified.
“Those are used very sparingly and in those extraordinary conditions that may exist,” Pomaville said.
My response would be that air pollution spikes do meet the criteria of “substantial public health emergencies.” And just because we experience these episodes with alarming frequency doesn’t make them any less “extraordinary.”
Of course, people could choose to ignore those alerts — just like many of us already do when one pops up on their TV or cell phone screen. But that’s on them. At least they’d get the information in the most timely and effective manner possible. Which cannot be said at present.
