DELANO, Calif. (KERO) — The Center on Race, Poverty, and the Environment has been encouraging Delano residents to speak up for their health during community meetings. Discussing possible solutions to air pollution.
- The Center on Race and Poverty and the Environment has been conducting monthly meetings with the community for the past year.
- Each meeting is focused on getting input from Delano residents, on the issues they’ve experienced regarding air pollution and ideas for possible solutions.
- This plan, helps bigger corporations like San Joaquin Valley Air District better understand the roots of the air pollution in Delano to later decide what will solution could be implemented.
Central Valley residents know about bad air quality all too well, especially for communities who live dangerously close to large fields. This is the case for Delano, which is why a local organization is working to start the conversation about future improvements.
“They are about educating people and letting people also decide what’s best for their communities,” said Diana Mireles with the Center on Race Poverty and the Environment. “They have the power to say what programs they want to implement to reduce pollution because they are the ones living and suffering.
Mireles says they’ve been holding these monthly meetings for the past year.
Pesticides, oil and gas companies, dairy farms, and farmland are just some of the many issues that Delano residents have brought up as issues to their overall health.
And after common issues are recognized, Mireles says possible solutions are then identified.
“For example we could use vegetative barriers, for example electric grass cutting machines, just some examples of how we can reduce pollution,” said Mireles.
Gustavo Aguirre Jr., with the Central California asthma coalition says these conversation contribute to the creation of a Local Community Emissions Reduction Plan.
“The objective is to create strategies that reduce air pollution locally to present to the Valley Air District and the California Air Resources board for support you know for actual money to come into the communities,” said Aguirre.
The next meeting will be on October 16th at 5:30 pm at 1012 Jefferson street.
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