Richard Parks

Air pollution can drive devastating forms of dementia, research suggests Airborne particles cause toxic clumps of proteins in brain that are hallmarks of Lewy body dementia, study indicates

“The most direct implication is that clean air policies are brain health policies.”
www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Clean Heat, Clean Air report This American Lung Association report highlights the benefits of zero-emission technologies in the industrial heating sector, including over $1 trillion in public health benefits by 2050.

This American Lung Association report illustrates the potential for dramatic air quality and public health improvements
in America’s industrial manufacturing sector:
* 3,200 premature deaths avoided
* 1,870,000 asthma attacks avoided
* $47.5 billion in health benefits
www.lung.org/clean-air/cl...

A SoCalGas representative caps the gas line and removes the gas meter from our home.

Our home is now gas free! We chipped away at it over several years. Each electric appliance has been an improvement over the gas one it replaced. Plus: lower utility bills, improved in-door air quality, no more gas leaks, and no more pollution vented into our community.

"An effective heating transition will ultimately require coordinated, neighborhood-scale strategies that consider the high fixed costs of legacy infrastructure."

Effects of uncoordinated electrification on energy burdens for natural gas customers - Scientific Reports Scientific Reports - Effects of uncoordinated electrification on energy burdens for natural gas customers

"Households that do not electrify may bear a 46% increase in gas bills on average over the next 15 years (relative to current costs)." www.nature.com/articles/s41...

4.6 Billion Years On, the Sun Is Having a Moment In the past two years, without much notice, solar power has begun to truly transform the world’s energy system.

Renewable energy has suddenly become the obvious, mainstream, cost-efficient choice around the world. California is so far using 40% less natural gas to generate electricity than it did in 2023. UK 2024 carbon emissions fell below what they were in 1879.
www.newyorker.com/news/annals-...

How to use tax credits for EVs and home projects before they expire Everything you need to know about which tax credits Congress just voted to eliminate, when they expire and who qualifies.

There is still time to benefit. Everything you need to know about which tax credits Congress just voted to eliminate, when they expire and who qualifies.
wapo.st/4ldY3gK

In California, a Push to Decommission Gas Lines in Low-Income Neighborhoods Moves Forward - Inside Climate News Neighborhood-scale decarbonization is an efficient way to electrify neighborhoods that might otherwise be left behind.

What if a neighborhood could switch from gas to electric in one fell swoop? In California, work is underway to do just that.

LA repeals oil phaseout law as residents near wells seek health protections Communities living near oil drilling want the city to move quickly to reinstate its oil phaseout rule, as well as curtail practices like acid maintenance.

@laist.com reporter Erin Stone focuses on advocates' urgent efforts to protect communities from oil sites' toxic health impacts even as they work with city leaders to end neighborhood oil drilling. @redeemercp.bsky.social @standla.bsky.social laist.com/news/climate...

Facing strong community opposition, the oil company, the oil company, once again canceled their acid jobs after scheduling them to coincide with 1,300 children taking their seats at three K-12 schools less than 1000-feet away. Join the fun as we work to build and become the beloved community!

We did it! With just 72-hour notice, neighbors came together to build a floating sign out of deer fencing and U-Haul tarps, and then turned out for a pop-up protest to protect our community from toxic acid work.

Need help switching appliances from gas to electric? A 'coach' can help Government incentives for climate-friendly upgrades are confusing to navigate, and it can be hard to find businesses that sell them. So a new industry is emerging to help: the decarbonization coach.

Looking to electrify your home?
laist.com/news/climate...

A great start to the day! 25+ neighbors showed up to a pop-up rally outside the Murphy Drill Site to protest the oil company's scheduled acid work less than 1000' from 3 schools serving 1,300 students. The work was canceled. #EndNeighborhoodDrilling

A public record request to the City of Los Angeles revealed that eight acid jobs are planned in rapid succession at the Murphy Drill Site. So far, two have been made public on the 1148.2 portal.

Thanks for asking. The Murphy oil drill site at 2126 W. Adams Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90018 is owned by the Los Angeles Catholic Archdiocese. The notification for tomorrow's acid maintenance work was made public through the South Coast Air Quality Management District's Rule 1148.2 notification page.

Commentary: Archbishop Gomez, you still have time. Follow Pope Francis' example As L.A. became more progressive, Gomez retreated into his conservatism. During his three years as the first Latino head of the U.S. Catholic Conference of Bishops, Gomez pursued culture war nonsense i...

Tomorrow, the LA Archdiocese will host a massive acid maintenance job at its Murphy oil drill site in South Central LA. 1,300 students attend class less than 1,000' away. Love of neighbor & care for our common home should trump greed. @gustavoarellano.bsky.social
www.latimes.com/california/s...

Good news! After overcoming design flaws and costly ($1M) copper wire theft, construction on the Jefferson Beautiful Safe Routes to School project is back on track. Looking forward to the repaired sidewalks, ramps, bike lanes, pedestrian lighting, signalized crossings, and street trees coming soon!

Full circle moment in South Central LA youth who marched with @redeemercp.bsky.social as children to close the Jefferson Drill Site returned to see the progress! They learned about the ongoing remediation & shared their powerful vision for a redeveloped space that will finally heal this community.

How to check your neighborhood's exposure to diesel truck fumes A new interactive map from USC researchers breaks down traffic to and from ports by ZIP code and street.

How to check your LA neighborhood's exposure to diesel truck fumes. "Diesel exhaust accounts for more than 2/3 of cancer risk from air pollution in the LA basin". Helpful research by Prof. Jill Johnston of the USC Center for Children's Environmental Health. laist.com/news/health/...

Fed-up with oil fumes in their classrooms & oil pollution in their neighborhood, South Central LA youth met with LA mayor Bass. Youth are defending our community & challenging the norms of corporate wealth before public health. May their love of neighbor & neighborhood inspire us to greater action.

How Bad Are Gas Stoves for My Health? They emit harmful pollutants, which makes good ventilation crucial.

Underscoring the urgent need to eliminate gas in homes:
www.nytimes.com/2024/10/28/c...

Good news for breathers! Today, @gavinnewsom.bsky.social, signed AB 3233 granting local jurisdictions authority to phase-out oil drilling. AB 3233 gives new life to LA's oil phase-out ordinance after the oil industry won a lawsuit overturning it.
www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/n...

Our community organized to close the Jefferson oil drill site and worked with Asm. Jones-Sawyer to secure a $10M grant to buy it. CalPoly Pomona landscape architecture students are helping our community imagine the possibilities for a neighborhood park, affordable housing, and a community center.

Milestone Reached In Inglewood Oil Phaseout
Oil extraction to end by 2029
https://laist.com/news/climate-environment/milestone-reached-in-inglewood-oil-phaseout Via @LAist @Erstone7. @STAND_LA

Oil operator E&B thanks @Planning4LA and @CityAttorneyLA for all the money they saved the company by taking away health protections from South LA residents living next to the Murphy Drill Site. #EarlyChristmas!
@MayorOfLA @STAND_LA @RedeemerCP

@Planning4LA & @CityAttorneyLA propose allowing oil company, E&B, to import & burn tens-of-millions of cubic feet of methane next to our homes & schools. Meanwhile, they have prohibited on-site power generation at West LA drill sites for decades. @STAND_LA @RedeemerCP @MayorOfLA

Oil drilling's myriad harms to public health are so clear, but @planning4la and @CityAttorneyLA continue to deny South LA residents equal protection.

@STAND_LA, @RedeemerCP
https://www.citywatchla.com/voices/27684-drilling-deception-e-bs-false-claims-in-south-la

LA breaks ground on the community led, $12.2 million Jefferson Beautiful safe routes to school project. Repaired sidewalks, street trees, pedestrian lighting, bike lanes, signalized crossings, and more coming to Jefferson Blvd. from Vermont Ave. west to Western Ave.

https://www.propublica.org/article/cost-of-california-oil-cleanup-exceeds-industry-profits

Big Oil plans to dine and dash, leaving taxpayers a bill that will "vastly exceed all the industry's future profits in the state." Now is the time to stop this theft w/higher bonding requirements. Excellent reporting by @MarkOlalde @propublica. @STAND_LA ...