As part of the ongoing collaborative effort between South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) and the City of Paramount, the Paramount City Council voted 5-0 on Tuesday, January 10, to allocate $50,000 to purchase approximately ten air monitoring devices, and the City committed to work with SCAQMD to develop a plan for placement of the monitors and public release of the results.
“The City of Paramount relies on the air quality experts and scientists at SCAQMD to regulate and monitor the air quality in our community,” said Mayor Daryl Hofmeyer. “The City is taking proactive measures to address environmental concerns, and an important aspect of that effort is having strong data to address any questions. Monitoring data will empower our community to address air quality concerns and aid the efforts of SCAQMD to enhance their regulatory oversight here. The City is committed to setting a high bar for environmental monitoring that protects our residents.”
Details of the innovative monitoring partnership with SCAQMD are still being developed. The City is pursuing additional avenues to cover SCAQMD’s costs of collecting the samples, maintaining the monitors and conducting the laboratory analysis. The goal is to create an enhanced network of air monitors. Data from the stations will be made available by the City through its recently launched environmental information portal at paramountenvironment.org.
“Paramount has been very helpful in our efforts to address the elevated hexavalent chromium levels detected in some industrial areas,” said Wayne Nastri, executive officer of SCAQMD.
“This planned monitoring network will provide another tool in our long-term oversight of air quality in the community, assisting SCAQMD to more quickly identify elevated pollution levels, locate the source, and take immediate action to reduce emissions,” Nastri said.
Since news of the elevated hexavalent chromium levels was first shared by SCAQMD, the City of Paramount has been working aggressively with regulatory authorities to aid their oversight efforts to identify polluters and bring a swift end to these high levels. The City has already implemented a 45-day moratorium on new or expanding metal-related businesses, has contributed staff to aid with inspections sweeps, launched a community information portal for residents, provided support and facilities to SCAQMD to conduct community outreach, and has tested water supplies for hexavalent chromium to address community concerns.
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