New Yorkers have some of the highest asthma rates in the country – up to 25 percent of school-age children in some Harlem neighborhoods have been diagnosed with asthma. The article states that tailpipe pollution is the biggest local threat to the city’s air quality, and diesel exhaust, a well-known asthma trigger, is especially dangerous since it sends more than forty cancer-causing compounds into the air.
There are cost-effective solutions for substantially cutting sources of air pollution, and New York has already begun to adopt some of those solutions. Last year, New York became the first U.S. city to enact legislation that requires all companies receiving city contracts for public construction projects to use ultra-low sulfur diesel fuel and the best available retrofits. Legislation currently before the city council would expand this commitment to all city fleets and make New York a national leader in cutting diesel pollution.
For more information, please see www.gothamgazette.com/article/feature-commentary/20050110/202/1240 and www.nypost.com/postopinion/editorial/38055.htm
For more information on diesel exhaust and related health effects, please see http://www.oehha.ca.gov/public_info/facts/dieselfacts.html.
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