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Important Opportunity to Support Healthy Communities

Next week, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) is holding
key workshops in Fresno, Los Angeles, Oakland, Riverside County,
San Diego and Ventura (click here for schedule) in preparation for
their September 2010 meeting on Senate Bill 375 (Steinberg, 2008),
California's Sustainable Communities and Climate Protection Act.
CARB recently released draft targets for each region in the state
to reduce greenhouse emissions from passenger vehicles through
improved land use and transportation planning under this law. In
September, CARB will finalize these targets and move the state one
step closer to meeting our clean air and climate goals. Help us
send a message that California must adopt the strongest possible
targets to challenge each region to depart from business-as-usual
sprawl in favor of healthier, sustainable communities. If you plan
to attend a workshop, we encourage you to review our public health
talking points.

Smart growth is key in the fight against air pollution, climate
change and chronic illness

California is home to some of the worst air pollution in America,
largely because so many of our communities have been built for cars
and offer few safe and practical pedestrian, bicycle or transit
alternatives to driving, even for the shortest trips. Our
dependence on driving worsens our air pollution health crisis,
global warming, and robs us of opportunities to incorporate
physical activity into our daily lives. Improving options for more
physically active transportation will help reduce a wide range of
chronic illnesses like asthma, obesity, diabetes, depression and
heart disease (read more in our "Land Use, Climate Change and
Public Health Issue Brief").

Please speak out for ambitious targets that will promote healthier
transportation choices

If you can't attend a workshop, please take a moment to write Mary
Nichols, Chair of California Air Resources Board, to voice your
support for strong targets and healthier communities by copying and
pasting the following message into the message field on the Air
Board website:

Dear Chairman Nichols,

I am writing to thank you for your leadership on climate change
policy and to encourage the California Air Resources Board to
support public health by establishing the most ambitious regional
greenhouse gas reduction targets possible under SB375. 　

Establishing strong targets will clearly signal the need for a
departure from business as usual sprawl and support more
sustainable communities throughout California where residents have
healthier, physically active walking, biking or transit
alternatives to driving. 　

Improving California’s land use and transportation planning
processes to reduce our dependency on driving offers a wide range
of benefits to our communities. Along with addressing our ongoing
air pollution-related public health crisis and cutting our
contributions to climate change, promoting opportunities for daily
physical activity will reduce the burdens faced by our children,
the elderly and others living with chronic illnesses like asthma,
obesity, diabetes and depression.　

Please continue to support public health by establishing strong
regional greenhouse gas targets.