I.
The top polluter in California is CHEMICAL WASTE MANAGEMENT INC. located in Kettleman City.
The top polluter is EXXONMOBIL OIL CORP. TORRANCE REFINERY. It is one of the top ten polluters in California (ranked 5).
In 2002, this Los Angeles county ranked among the dirtiest/worst 10% of all counties in the U.S. in terms of total environmental releases.
The top polluter in Los Angeles county is EXXONMOBIL OIL CORP. TORRANCE.
The top pollutant released in Los Angeles county is ammonia.
4 percent of houses in LOS ANGELES County have a high risk of lead hazards.
Compared to other counties in the U.S. Los Angeles county is one of the worst in terms of air quality.
Los Angeles county is one of the worst counties in the U.S. in terms of water quality.
The data on distribution of environmental burdens clearly indicates that low-income and people of color families are more affected in comparison to whites and high income families.
California is the state with the highest number of locations with poor air quality.
The top five states with high health risks from air pollution are New York, New Jersey, District of Columbia, California and Massachusetts.
The data obtained from scorecard is quite disturbing considering how many people who inhabit California are constantly subjected to environmental dangers.
II
Rowland Water District. http://www.ewg.org/tap-water/whatsinyourwater/CA/Rowland-Water-District/1910194/
Although there are no reported chemicals exceeding health guidelines in Rowland Water District, chemicals often seen in tap water in other counties are Manganese, Carbon tetrachloride, Trichloroethylene and Nitrate.
III
89 beaches in Los Angeles are graded positive (A and B) during dry weather. The number of graded beaches for wet weather is reasonably lower because there was no rain registered on some beaches for the selected period of time.
There is a significant difference when it comes to beach ratings during wet weather conditions in Los Angeles and Orange counties.
The current grade for Corona Del Mar – Little Corona Beach is A+ both for dry and wet weather.
Dry weather grades are registered as sharp drops and rises while changes in the wet weather condition grades are not so steep, suggesting that the environment needs a longer time to recover from pollutants brought to the site by rain water.
It seems like there was a problem with rain water during 2001 – 2005 period which was successfully solved.
The information presented on http://brc.healthebay.org is quite useful, although, not surprising because it is a well-known fact that coastal areas and ocean water are vulnerable to the byproducts of human activities.
IV
The two contaminants of concern regarding fish caught in Los Angeles coastal area are mercury and PCBs.
13% of all the lakes and rivers in California contain dangerously high levels of methylmercury.
V
The biggest share in the mix is gas, while oil is the less used energy source.
Raising public awareness about environmental issues seems like a good basis for future improvements. The tools that allow people to independently survey the area they live in for potential environmental threats are great.
