2018 Ferguson Fire in Mariposa County, California
Photo credit: USDA
March 25, 2024 - The Rural County Representatives of California (RCRC) reports RCRC supports Senate Bill 945, authored by Senator Marie Alvarado-Gil (D-Jackson). This measure requires the California Department of Public Health (CDPH), in consultation with CAL FIRE, the Wildfire and Forest Resilience Task Force and the California Air Resources Board, to create and maintain a statewide integrated wildfire smoke and health data platform to integrate wildfire smoke and health data from multiple databases to provide greater understanding of the negative impacts of wildfire smoke on the state’s population.
Independent studies have shown that the past several years of prolific wildfire activity across the state have also increased pollution from particulate matter and other toxic air contaminants resulting from wildfire smoke. The far-reaching smoke impacts of large, high-severity wildfires has yet to be quantified by California’s air quality and health departments with the same diligence as other pollutant sources such as motor vehicles, even though studies have shown that the annual emissions from California’s wildfires during the most severe fire years have outpaced emissions from some other sources.
SB 945 would require CDPH to establish a statewide platform to integrate wildfire smoke and health date from various sources to better understand the true impacts of wildfire smoke and the need to mitigate future catastrophic wildfire events for the sake of public health.
The bill recently passed the Senate Health Committee and was placed on consent. SB 945 is awaiting action in the Senate Environmental Quality Committee. RCRC joined the California Forest Watershed Alliance (CAFWA) in a letter of support, which is available here.
ABOUT RURAL COUNTY REPRESENTATIVES OF CALIFORNIA (RCRC)
The Rural County Representatives of California (RCRC) is a thirty-seven member county strong service organization that champions policies on behalf of California’s rural counties. RCRC is dedicated to representing the collective unique interests of its membership, providing legislative and regulatory representation at the State and Federal levels, and providing responsible services for its members to enhance and protect the quality of life in rural California counties. To learn more about RCRC, visit rcrcnet.org and follow @RuralCounties on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Source: RCRC
