Latest news with #JoanMeiners
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Reader Q&A: What's up with Arizona's special gasoline blends and are they worth the cost?
This is part of a monthly series answering readers' climate-related questions and highlighting Arizona's unsung climate leaders. The stories aim to help connect and inspire Arizonans who care about protecting a livable climate and may be struggling to find hope in that effort. You can ask a question or nominate an unsung Arizona climate leader by filling out this form at or by emailing climate reporter Joan Meiners at The price of gasoline is a frequent hot topic of conversation around the water cooler, er, gas pump. It also comes up like clockwork every four years during the run-up to the presidential election when it is, incorrectly, used to blame or praise candidates for their economic approach (turns out gasoline prices have very little to do with short-term domestic policies and are largely out of any sitting president's control, according to energy analysts). In Arizona, gasoline tends to be a bit more expensive than the national average, as my colleague Russ Wiles reported recently in advance of Memorial Day weekend travel. One reason could be that a state law requires the summertime use of a special blend designed to help control ozone and other air pollutants that peak during hot months in metro Phoenix, which consistently ranks among the regions with the worst air quality in the country. After Wiles' story was published, he received questions from readers about whether that requirement is still in place and, if so, whether it's worth the added cost. More: What to expect with Arizona gas prices as Memorial Day, summer travel season nears "Russ, unfortunately, you didn't mention the exotic blend of gasoline only Arizona is required to use to supposedly lower the ozone levels, which costs tons more than similar blends that could supposedly have the same effect on pollution and are cheaper," one reader wrote. "You didn't mention the special blend that is required by the consent order locally signed," another reader pointed out. "Is it no longer in effect?" Arizona's cleaner-burning gasoline blend was not the focus of Wiles' story last month. But since burning fossil fuels like gasoline for transportation is a top contributor to the emission of greenhouse gases causing the climate to warm and destabilize, and because ozone is an indirect part of that larger equation, it is the focus of this story — part of our monthly series answering reader's climate-related questions or highlighting a local climate leader. (Submit your question here: AZ climate leader: These 'great old broads' are serious about science, wolves and reversing climate change The most basic difference with cleaner-burning gasoline is the addition of oxygen-containing compounds, or oxygenates, that help gasoline burn more completely in fuel tanks and not evaporate from vehicles. This makes for better fuel efficiency (with some minor mpg tradeoffs) while minimizing toxins that end up in the air. CBG blends also reduce the amount of benzene, a known human carcinogen, by half and the amount of sulfur, which facilitates better emissions controls on vehicles, by up to 80%. And they typically cut back on the use of other smog-forming hydrocarbons once thought to improve vehicle performance. Extensive testing with millions of miles driven on CBG blends since 1996, however, has shown no negative effects on vehicles or in other types of gasoline-burning engines. The fuel types can be used interchangeably without any modifications. The estimated effect is a 15% reduction in smog for a 5- to 15-cent per gallon cost increase. (These stats are for California, which has a slightly different blend. Arizona officials declined to comment for The Arizona Republic on how the local CBG blend differs or might affect prices.) It's tough to translate that added cost at the pump into health care savings related to air pollution's links to higher incidences of asthma, heart disease, lung cancer, stroke and more. But since children can be especially vulnerable to air pollutants, the value of reducing them now can pay dividends for society further into the future, with incoming generations that are able to be more productive in the workforce and less reliant on the health care system. More: Reader Q&A: How can I protect my kids from climate pollution and advocate for clean air? Jeremy Martin, a chemist who directs fuels policy for the Union of Concerned Scientists' Clean Transportation Program, said it's important to look at vehicles and fuels as an interconnected system shifting with gasoline markets and vehicle efficiency improvements, and also with societal health outcomes and concerns. "One important piece of context is that federal fuel regulations have been changing as well," Martin said. "Vehicle regulations and fuel regulations go hand in hand, and together they result in reduced air pollution and reduced health impacts from that pollution." The American Lung Association reported in 2025 that Arizona ranked fourth in the number of unhealthy ozone days and that 84% of Arizonans live in communities with unhealthy air. Another AZ climate leader: Rhonda Bannard believes women are the changemakers for climate action and Mother Earth Arizona's struggle with unhealthy air goes back decades, and so does its history of trying to contain it using cleaner-burning gasoline, one of several tools in the air quality arsenal. It all started in 1997, when the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency extended its reformulated gasoline program to the Phoenix area to bring it into compliance with air quality regulations established by the Clean Air Act. Then-Gov. Fife Symington supported this solution and asked in January 1997 that the EPA require refiners to supply local retailers with the reformulated gasoline blend by June. But in September of that year, Symington resigned from office over bank fraud convictions that were eventually overturned. His successor, Gov. Jane Dee Hull, requested an exemption from the EPA program just one week later. Although Phoenix was still considered a "serious ozone non-attainment area," the EPA granted this removal as of June 1998, one year after it had started, because Arizona had developed its own clean fuel program to reduce emissions of particulates and volatile organic compounds that contribute to ozone formation. The specifics of that state program have shifted and been revised over the years, with some efforts to increase its benefits for air quality and other introduced legislation, including in the current legislative session, aimed at expanding what types of fuel can be considered clean enough or loosening regulations. Vince Wolpert, who manages CBG compliance for the Arizona Department of Agriculture, said the current supply is sourced from refineries in California, New Mexico and Texas and brought into the state primarily by two pipelines, one from California and the other from New Mexico. "As for how the Department of Agriculture became involved, the Office of Weights and Measures already regulated fuel quality and quantity," Wolpert said. "Therefore, the state legislature tasked our agency as the enforcement agency for the CBG program." Read our climate series: The latest from Joan Meiners at azcentral: climate coverage from Arizona and the Southwest Beyond the cost-saving benefits of slowing destructive atmospheric warming by reducing tailpipe emissions that increase greenhouse gas concentrations and worsen storms, the climate issue becomes involved in gasoline pricing when demand for CBG intersects with Arizona's growing electric vehicle industry. "Of course, our best bet would be to invest more in transit and electric vehicles to make a difference for our air," said Sandy Bahr, director of the Grand Canyon chapter of the Sierra Club. Since 2022, Arizona has become an "EV battery manufacturing powerhouse," with several large new facilities incentivized by clean energy tax credits tied to former President Joe Biden's Inflation Reduction Act. Hundreds of millions of investment dollars and thousands of jobs have flowed to the state as a result. But the Trump administration's budget proposal currently under consideration by the U.S. Senate would repeal most of those funds, as well as a program offering average Americans up to $7,500 back on electric vehicle purchases. Advocates say this would devastate Arizona's clean energy economy and have hazardous consequences for energy access, air quality and health. Some analysts further predict that a slowing of the American electric vehicle industry — one that forces more people into internal combustion vehicles despite globally increasing market demand for EVs — could put more pressure on gasoline supply chains, causing a greater increase in prices at the pump than any version of a cleaner-burning fuel program. Joan Meiners is the climate news and storytelling reporter at The Arizona Republic and Her award-winning work has also appeared in Discover Magazine, National Geographic, ProPublica and the Washington Post Magazine. Before becoming a journalist, she completed a doctorate in ecology. Follow Joan on Twitter at @beecycles, on Bluesky @ or email her at This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Do Arizona's fuel blends help air quality or reduce greenhouses gases?
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Reader Q&A: What's up with Arizona's special gasoline blends and are they worth the cost?
This is part of a monthly series answering readers' climate-related questions and highlighting Arizona's unsung climate leaders. The stories aim to help connect and inspire Arizonans who care about protecting a livable climate and may be struggling to find hope in that effort. You can ask a question or nominate an unsung Arizona climate leader by filling out this form at or by emailing climate reporter Joan Meiners at The price of gasoline is a frequent hot topic of conversation around the water cooler, er, gas pump. It also comes up like clockwork every four years during the run-up to the presidential election when it is, incorrectly, used to blame or praise candidates for their economic approach (turns out gasoline prices have very little to do with short-term domestic policies and are largely out of any sitting president's control, according to energy analysts). In Arizona, gasoline tends to be a bit more expensive than the national average, as my colleague Russ Wiles reported recently in advance of Memorial Day weekend travel. One reason could be that a state law requires the summertime use of a special blend designed to help control ozone and other air pollutants that peak during hot months in metro Phoenix, which consistently ranks among the regions with the worst air quality in the country. After Wiles' story was published, he received questions from readers about whether that requirement is still in place and, if so, whether it's worth the added cost. More: What to expect with Arizona gas prices as Memorial Day, summer travel season nears "Russ, unfortunately, you didn't mention the exotic blend of gasoline only Arizona is required to use to supposedly lower the ozone levels, which costs tons more than similar blends that could supposedly have the same effect on pollution and are cheaper," one reader wrote. "You didn't mention the special blend that is required by the consent order locally signed," another reader pointed out. "Is it no longer in effect?" Arizona's cleaner-burning gasoline blend was not the focus of Wiles' story last month. But since burning fossil fuels like gasoline for transportation is a top contributor to the emission of greenhouse gases causing the climate to warm and destabilize, and because ozone is an indirect part of that larger equation, it is the focus of this story — part of our monthly series answering reader's climate-related questions or highlighting a local climate leader. (Submit your question here: AZ climate leader: These 'great old broads' are serious about science, wolves and reversing climate change The most basic difference with cleaner-burning gasoline is the addition of oxygen-containing compounds, or oxygenates, that help gasoline burn more completely in fuel tanks and not evaporate from vehicles. This makes for better fuel efficiency (with some minor mpg tradeoffs) while minimizing toxins that end up in the air. CBG blends also reduce the amount of benzene, a known human carcinogen, by half and the amount of sulfur, which facilitates better emissions controls on vehicles, by up to 80%. And they typically cut back on the use of other smog-forming hydrocarbons once thought to improve vehicle performance. Extensive testing with millions of miles driven on CBG blends since 1996, however, has shown no negative effects on vehicles or in other types of gasoline-burning engines. The fuel types can be used interchangeably without any modifications. The estimated effect is a 15% reduction in smog for a 5- to 15-cent per gallon cost increase. (These stats are for California, which has a slightly different blend. Arizona officials declined to comment for The Arizona Republic on how the local CBG blend differs or might affect prices.) It's tough to translate that added cost at the pump into health care savings related to air pollution's links to higher incidences of asthma, heart disease, lung cancer, stroke and more. But since children can be especially vulnerable to air pollutants, the value of reducing them now can pay dividends for society further into the future, with incoming generations that are able to be more productive in the workforce and less reliant on the health care system. More: Reader Q&A: How can I protect my kids from climate pollution and advocate for clean air? Jeremy Martin, a chemist who directs fuels policy for the Union of Concerned Scientists' Clean Transportation Program, said it's important to look at vehicles and fuels as an interconnected system shifting with gasoline markets and vehicle efficiency improvements, and also with societal health outcomes and concerns. "One important piece of context is that federal fuel regulations have been changing as well," Martin said. "Vehicle regulations and fuel regulations go hand in hand, and together they result in reduced air pollution and reduced health impacts from that pollution." The American Lung Association reported in 2025 that Arizona ranked fourth in the number of unhealthy ozone days and that 84% of Arizonans live in communities with unhealthy air. Another AZ climate leader: Rhonda Bannard believes women are the changemakers for climate action and Mother Earth Arizona's struggle with unhealthy air goes back decades, and so does its history of trying to contain it using cleaner-burning gasoline, one of several tools in the air quality arsenal. It all started in 1997, when the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency extended its reformulated gasoline program to the Phoenix area to bring it into compliance with air quality regulations established by the Clean Air Act. Then-Gov. Fife Symington supported this solution and asked in January 1997 that the EPA require refiners to supply local retailers with the reformulated gasoline blend by June. But in September of that year, Symington resigned from office over bank fraud convictions that were eventually overturned. His successor, Gov. Jane Dee Hull, requested an exemption from the EPA program just one week later. Although Phoenix was still considered a "serious ozone non-attainment area," the EPA granted this removal as of June 1998, one year after it had started, because Arizona had developed its own clean fuel program to reduce emissions of particulates and volatile organic compounds that contribute to ozone formation. The specifics of that state program have shifted and been revised over the years, with some efforts to increase its benefits for air quality and other introduced legislation, including in the current legislative session, aimed at expanding what types of fuel can be considered clean enough or loosening regulations. Vince Wolpert, who manages CBG compliance for the Arizona Department of Agriculture, said the current supply is sourced from refineries in California, New Mexico and Texas and brought into the state primarily by two pipelines, one from California and the other from New Mexico. "As for how the Department of Agriculture became involved, the Office of Weights and Measures already regulated fuel quality and quantity," Wolpert said. "Therefore, the state legislature tasked our agency as the enforcement agency for the CBG program." Read our climate series: The latest from Joan Meiners at azcentral: climate coverage from Arizona and the Southwest Beyond the cost-saving benefits of slowing destructive atmospheric warming by reducing tailpipe emissions that increase greenhouse gas concentrations and worsen storms, the climate issue becomes involved in gasoline pricing when demand for CBG intersects with Arizona's growing electric vehicle industry. "Of course, our best bet would be to invest more in transit and electric vehicles to make a difference for our air," said Sandy Bahr, director of the Grand Canyon chapter of the Sierra Club. Since 2022, Arizona has become an "EV battery manufacturing powerhouse," with several large new facilities incentivized by clean energy tax credits tied to former President Joe Biden's Inflation Reduction Act. Hundreds of millions of investment dollars and thousands of jobs have flowed to the state as a result. But the Trump administration's budget proposal currently under consideration by the U.S. Senate would repeal most of those funds, as well as a program offering average Americans up to $7,500 back on electric vehicle purchases. Advocates say this would devastate Arizona's clean energy economy and have hazardous consequences for energy access, air quality and health. Some analysts further predict that a slowing of the American electric vehicle industry — one that forces more people into internal combustion vehicles despite globally increasing market demand for EVs — could put more pressure on gasoline supply chains, causing a greater increase in prices at the pump than any version of a cleaner-burning fuel program. Joan Meiners is the climate news and storytelling reporter at The Arizona Republic and Her award-winning work has also appeared in Discover Magazine, National Geographic, ProPublica and the Washington Post Magazine. Before becoming a journalist, she completed a doctorate in ecology. Follow Joan on Twitter at @beecycles, on Bluesky @ or email her at This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Do Arizona's fuel blends help air quality or reduce greenhouses gases?
Yahoo
04-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Rhonda Bannard believes women are the changemakers for climate action and Mother Earth
This is part of a monthly series highlighting Arizona's climate leaders and answering readers' climate-related questions. The stories, which appear in print and online the first Sunday of the month, aim to help to connect and inspire Arizonans who care about protecting a livable climate and may be struggling to find hope in that effort lately. You can nominate an unsung Arizona climate leader for a story or ask a question by filling out the form at or by emailing climate reporter Joan Meiners at Less guru, more Velcro and glue. That's how Rhonda Bannard sees her role in the environmental movement. As a mom, businesswoman, former media professional and "just an average, everyday person," she tries to bring her innovative thinking and networking skills to the table to build community and a better world. She doesn't have a degree in climate or environmental science. She "just wants to help people find one another and work together to drive solutions forward." Bannard has spent her career doing this mostly with other women. For nearly 20 years, she's hosted a monthly "Inspired Women's Salon," gathering together members of her Phoenix networks to discuss topics like courage, equality and climate change. She's passionate about those issues. But she's perhaps most excited about the catalytic power of community. "When I was divorced with two little kids and felt like I needed unity, what I valued most was meaningful conversation," Bannard said. "I'm not a small talker. I like deeper conversations. That's where I get energized, listening and learning from other women and seeing connections happen." First in the climate leader series: These 'great old broads' are serious about science, wolves and reversing climate change She's known for that energy and real talk in her circles around Phoenix, and for using it to get things done. Before COVID shut down in-person gatherings for a time, she had arranged for a speaker to come talk to her women's group about championing a cause. But at the last minute, the speaker sent an 18-year-old Arizona State University freshman instead. That student, Brian Macinas, an organizer with AZ Youth Climate Strike, spurred Bannard toward a new goal. "He was so knowledgeable and so profound," Bannard said. "There's a few kids I've met over my lifetime, and thought 'I want to be like you when I grow up.'" She ended up joining Macinas at some of the youth climate group gatherings and, before long, she found herself marching with them to the state capitol demanding climate action. "And it was shortly after that I came back and said, 'What about a giving day for the environment?'" she said. Bannard was the right woman for the job. With decades of experience working with nonprofits and being named to the inaugural "40 under 40 Leaders to Watch" list put out by the Phoenix Business Journal as part of the Greater Phoenix Chamber of Commerce, she was savvy about fundraising. And as a former journalist who covered agriculture and civil rights in Mississippi after graduating from the University of Arizona, she also knew how to connect with people on important issues and get the message out. In 2022, she launched the first giving day of her new nonprofit fundraising platform Earth Gives — the result of recognizing a gap in funding for climate action, where only 2% of philanthropy ends up going to organizations focused on climate solutions, despite much higher enthusiasm for this cause. 'The number one reason climate orgs only get 2% is that it's hard to tell the story if there's no immediate action," Bannard said. "If you're planting a tree, then you see a tree, but the work to absorb carbon and all that stuff is less visible and that's part of the reason why the funding is so low.' First in the monthly Q&A series: Reader Q&A: How can I protect my kids from climate pollution and advocate for clean air? Animal rescues, wildlife protection efforts and some of the big household-name conservation groups siphon off a lot of the money people give to broad environment platforms, she said. It's a "very small nut" that's left over for climate-specific boots-on-the-ground work. She thinks there needs to be more direct support for addressing climate change. So she put together the Earth Gives platform. Right now, it mostly functions to help donors find climate organizations to support during the main giving window, starting this year on Sep. 5 and leading up to "Earth Gives Day" on Oct. 7. Registration for nonprofits wanting to solicit donations is open now through Aug. 22. But eventually she hopes to build Earth Gives to the point where she can employ an accountant year-round and seamlessly funnel donations to groups working on conservation issues, climate justice, biodiversity preservation, nature podcasts, documentaries and more. 'Then it would become the type of thing where you can discover organizations, you can find their events, you can sign up to volunteer," Bannard said. "It's another tool in their toolbox. I hope one day it really becomes the go-to place for everyone involved.' In the meantime, Bannard is building the platform's offerings by hosting monthly Community Commons sessions for environmental nonprofits to convene and learn from one another about how to organize and tell their stories using tools like graphics and art. She draws inspiration from the corporate social responsibility guidelines pioneered by Patagonia, a company leading the way on ethical and sustainable practices. She's been following "the Patagonia sensibility" of lifting each other up and recognizing shared responsibility to the planet and one another since getting involved with nonprofits decades ago. Capitalism doesn't have to just be about consumerism, and she hopes Earth Gives can show that. 'It's not just about a monetary transaction," she said. "It's actually a shift in how you show up in the world and how you exist and in all of your thinking.' Bannard is also motivated by the work of other women, like those in her community salons, on behalf of the planet and future generations. 'The reason I'm doing this is because I'm a mom," she said. She has a 26-year-old daughter who studied biology at Northern Arizona University and a 24-year-old son who learned filmmaking skills at the University of Arizona that he now uses to help his mom edit her Earth Gives videos. "I'm very concerned about now and our future. I'm inspired by our youth and what we need to do together." New series on wildfire risk: Are Arizona cities prepared to evade urban wildfires? If not, will they build back better? Dads can be climate champions. The movement has Al Gore, she notes, and his Climate Reality project. But when you look around the climate nonprofit action space, it's made up of a lot of moms: groups like Science Moms and Mom's Clean Air Force fighting for a cleaner, better future with a more stabilized and livable climate. 'I believe women are the changemakers," she said. "When you want to get shit done, you call busy women and you make it happen. We're the protectors. I mean, the Earth is called 'Mother' for a reason. She's been taking care of us and we need to take care of her.' In the end, what Bannard has learned most through all her community-building and nonprofit-activating, is that it's all about love. "It's just always fascinating how these conversations go, and how it comes down to joy and love and community and bringing people together," she said. "I mean, that's what really fills my heart, connecting with people through words and meaningful moments. That's how you build and advance change in the world.' Read our full climate series: The latest from Joan Meiners at azcentral: climate coverage from Arizona and the Southwest Joan Meiners is the climate news and storytelling reporter at The Arizona Republic and Her award-winning work has also appeared in Discover Magazine, National Geographic, ProPublica and the Washington Post Magazine. Before becoming a journalist, she completed a doctorate in ecology. Follow Joan on Twitter at @beecycles, on Bluesky @ or email her at Sign up for AZ Climate, The Republic's weekly climate and environment newsletter. Read more of the team's coverage at by subscribing to This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Rhonda Bannard believes in women, love and donating to climate causes
Yahoo
06-04-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Reader Q&A: How can I protect my kids from climate pollution and advocate for clean air?
This is part of a monthly series answering readers' climate-related questions and highlighting Arizona's unsung climate leaders. The stories aim to help to connect and inspire Arizonans who care about protecting a livable climate and may be struggling to find hope in that effort lately. You can ask a question or nominate an unsung Arizona climate leader by filling out this form at or by emailing climate reporter Joan Meiners at On New Year's Day, several people messaged me to ask if I had noticed how bad the air quality was in Phoenix after the previous night's firework celebrations. It was plain to see that day. Particulate matter, which can mean dust or soot or tailpipe emissions, hung heavy in the air. And that was just the pollution we could see. Ozone is an invisible contributor to poor air quality, and a particular problem for the Phoenix area. Maricopa County exceeded the ozone threshold deemed safe by the Clean Air Act on at least 46 days in 2024, and on 136 days over the last three years. These air pollutants are directly harmful to human health — by exacerbating respiratory problems like asthma in the short term and by increasing risk of lung cancer, heart disease, stroke, pneumonia and more over the long term. On a larger and more abstract scale, greenhouse gas air pollutants like carbon dioxide from car exhaust and methane from natural gas production (which contributes to ozone formation), also threaten human well-being by trapping heat energy from the sun, warming the atmosphere and causing more dangerous, expensive and chaotic weather systems. First in unsung climate leader series: These 'great old broads' are serious about science, wolves and reversing climate change So I was not surprised to see air quality show up as the focus of one of the first reader questions submitted to The Arizona Republic's new climate Q & A form. 'There is a direct relationship of climate change (pollution) and the quality of life," the reader, who wished to remain anonymous, wrote. "There are numbers out there air pollution alone is causing millions if not billions of premature deaths. Since Phoenix is one of the worst for air pollution, how is this impacting kids' lung development, obesity rates and even IQ levels? This impact on kids should have parents up in arms to take legal action against the state and companies polluting. Has there been any effort here?' I followed up on a phone call with this reader to learn more. She clearly knew enough to voice these specific concerns. But, she explained, she'd had a hard time finding clear information on research linking air quality to children's health, on what she can do to advocate for cleaner air, or on how to protect her children from the health impacts of climate-related air pollution in the meantime. "Are we being real with ourselves about the influence of pollution on child obesity rates, asthma, etc.?" she asked. Moms fight for kids' climate futures: Can an 'army of moms' slow climate change to spare their children a fossil fuel future? It's true that air pollution has been documented to negatively influence children's lung, heart and brain development. And the planetary warming that results from greenhouse gas pollution puts kids, who are more susceptible to extreme heat, at greater risk. Asthma and oppressive outdoor temperatures can then lead to less active lifestyles and greater risk of obesity. In 2022, I spoke with researcher Frederica Perera, founder of the Columbia Center for Children's Environmental Health, about her newly published review paper outlining known links between climate changing fossil fuel pollution and children's health. "We showed that children exposed to high air pollution in the city lose IQ points," Perera told me. "This really gave me a great deal of concern about this type of exposure." The paper also reported evidence of a connection between air pollution and increased risk for children developing bronchitis, autistic traits, depression, anxiety, hypertension, immune system dysregulation and more. Perera's study was not focused on Arizona. But her findings definitely apply. Arizona ranked dead last for air quality in a measure calculated by U.S. News and World Report based on population-weighted data from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Census Bureau. And in 2024, the American Lung Association gave Maricopa County an "F" on its "State of the Air" scorecard, estimating that 82,166 pediatric asthma sufferers and 50,443 pregnant people in the county were at risk of air pollution-related health complications. Read our climate series: The latest from Joan Meiners at azcentral: climate coverage from Arizona and the Southwest Why does Arizona have such terrible air quality, and what can we do? I connected with Will Humble, executive director for the Arizona Public Health Association, to learn more. He grew up in Phoenix at a time when he said school buses didn't need to idle to keep the AC on, because they didn't have air conditioning. Now, he said, besides an over-enthusiasm for fireworks, sprawl and limited public transit has resulted in more vehicle traffic and air conditioning use that burns fossil fuels, including diesel, which creates the tiniest category of particulates most harmful to little lungs. Humble said a weakening of the EPA's emissions rule, which "caved to industry on diesel and didn't do a great job of tightening the standard" makes matters worse. And he pointed to an Arizona bill that legalized the purchase and use of huge fireworks, introduced by Sen. David Gowan, R-Sierra Vista, "who sells fireworks for a living." He also blamed tire debris and road dust that builds up as the climate dries and warms. 'We have fewer rainy days now and that makes the valley dustier," Humble said. "It used to be summer thunderstorms would clean the streets off, but that doesn't happen anymore and so the trucks just keep kicking it up into the air.' Climate progress in Tucson schools: Tucson school district approves youth-led climate action plan Groups like Science Moms and Moms Clean Air Force have local chapters that help parents take civic action to reduce climate-warming emissions and oppose private interests chipping away at air quality protections. There is much to do on this front: Just two months into his second term, President Donald Trump's administration took steps to roll back air quality regulations and exempt certain industries from requirements established as part of the Clean Air Act — one of the biggest environmental success stories in U.S. history. His team has also been deleting environmental data and information about related health impacts from federal websites like the EPA and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But there are also reasons for hope: In the 25 years after those 1990 air quality amendments went into effect, emissions of air toxics declined by 68% while the U.S. economy, vehicle traffic, population and energy use continued to grow, according to the EPA. One study estimated the health care savings exceeded regulatory costs by a factor of 30 to one. And opposition groups are downloading and archiving federal environmental and health information. Electric buses help child asthma: How a Phoenix district's electric school buses could protect kids and help them learn As far as what parents can do in the short term, Humble advised that indoor air pollution is actually more likely to trigger asthma attacks for kids. Introducing air filters, humidifiers and changing out bedding, carpet and stuffed animals that can accumulate animal dander and dust mite feces will help children breathe better at night. Telling kids to avoid standing near idling vehicles waiting to pick them up from school, and pushing schools to limit idling with the air conditioning on can make a difference too. 'If I was the principal, my policy might say if it's less than 90 degrees, there's no idling," Humble said. Since 2022, at least two dozen school districts in the state have leveraged funds from President Joe Biden's Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act to cut emissions by introducing electric school buses. Trump has now paused most of those programs, but courts and public interest groups are challenging those orders. Finally, Humble recommends offsetting kids' risk from air pollution with proper nutrition and maintaining healthy lifestyles in other ways. 'Those are areas where parents have direct control,' he said. Joan Meiners is the climate news and storytelling reporter at The Arizona Republic and Her award-winning work has also appeared in Discover Magazine, National Geographic, ProPublica and the Washington Post Magazine. Before becoming a journalist, she completed a doctorate in ecology. Follow Joan on Twitter at @beecycles, on Bluesky @ or email her at This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Reader asks how to protect kids from climate pollution, push for cleaner air
