AN ARTICLE THAT JUST APPEARED IN SCIENCE DAILY CONFIRMS SOME OF OUR GREATEST FEARS.
Damage to our air quality is one of the reasons the Coalition has been opposed to gravel trucks traveling through the Ojai Valley on their way from the Cuyama valley to Oxnard and Ventura. Ojai has what is known as a “closed” air shed, which means that pollutants collect here in the valley and remain trapped. Despite appearances that might suggest otherwise, Ojai has some of the worst air quality in the County.
Scientists have demonstrated that the link between diesel fume exposure and cancer lies in the ability of diesel exhaust to induce the growth of new blood vessels that serve as a food supply for solid tumors.
(overturned gravel truck on Maricopa Highway, August 2009)
This suggests that previous illness isn’t required to make humans susceptible to the damaging effects of the diesel exhaust.
The tiny size of inhaled diesel particles, most less than 0.1 microns in diameter, potentially enables them to penetrate the human circulatory system, organs and tissues, meaning they can do this damage just about anywhere in the body. A micron is one millionth of a meter.
Diesel exhaust exposure levels in the study were designed to mimic the exposure people might experience while living in urban areas and commuting in heavy traffic. The levels were lower than or similar to those typically experienced by workers who use diesel-powered equipment, who tend to work in mines, on bridges and tunnels, along railroads, at loading docks, on farms and in vehicle maintenance garages, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.
(gravel truck involved in the August 2009 spill)
The key take-aways from the study are:
1) That exposure to diesel exhaust for just a short time period of two months could give even normal tissue the potential to develop a tumor.
2) That we need to raise public awareness so people can protect themselves and improve their health.
3) We most improve diesel engines so they generate fewer particles and exhaust that can be released into the ambient air.
4) The shorter the exposure to diesel exhaust, the better.
5) The tiny size of diesel exhaust particles may contribute to their ability to penetrate all areas of the body. Smaller particles hover in the air for a long time and can have long-term impact on humans when inhaled.
To read more go to:
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/09/090902110108.htm
This work was supported by Health Effects Institute awards and grants from the National Institutes of Health. Research was conducted at Ohio State’s Division of Environmental Health Sciences; the Davis Heart and Lung Research Institute; the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Fuzhou General Hospital in Fujian Province, China; the Department of Environmental Medicine at the New York University School of Medicine; and the Center for Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Research at Nationwide Children’s Research Institute.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
“Rock the Trucks!” Benefit Concert for the Ojai Valley’s
“Stop the Trucks!” Coalition
OJAI, Calif. (August 31, 2009) – Once again, the people of Ojai have come together to defend this unique town known for the arts, education, tourism, and extraordinary natural beauty. On October 3rd, a fantastic line-up of musicians and speakers will perform a benefit concert at Libbey Bowl to join the fight to Stop the Trucks!
About 800 double-hopper, 80,000-pound, diesel-exhaust polluting, speeding, huge trucks could be traveling – 24 hours a day, six days a week – up and down Highway 33 through the Ojai Valley and the Los Padres National Forest to and from four different mines located in and around the Cuyama Valley. To avoid widespread industrialization, danger and pollution, the coalition is asking the public to participate in “Rock the Trucks!” to help defray mounting legal fees.
The line-up for the concert includes: Lights – The Premiere Tribute Band to Journey; Jess Siebenberg/Jonathan McEuen and Teddy Jack; Shades of Day; Keith Carradine; Julie Christensen; Marty Grebb and others, brought to you by MoVents Entertainment. Food, beverage, and information booths will fill the park.
The Rock the Trucks! concert will take place on Saturday, October 3, 2-10 p.m., at Libbey Bowl, in the center of town. Cost: $25-$50 per person. For further information or to purchase tickets, log onto:
www.rockthetrucks.com
{ 3 comments }
Mexicans make their living driving trucks. This is racist!
Regarding: “trucks rule’s comment: I happen to know this is NOT against independent truckers. (My family makes their living driving trucks!) What they are talking about is the “Gravel Trucks” coming down from the mines up Hwy 33. They can take alternate routes that are safer. Do your research before pulling “The RACE card! Educate yourself. Many of my friends are hispanic. THIS has nothing to do with racism! Let’s all protect this beautiful valley by working together! (The Rock Quarries up Hwy. 33 and Ojai Valley residents.) These people are not against the independent tuckers! Do your research. Cant we just ALL get along? Peace…….:-)
To “Trucks rule”: What does ethnicity have to do with the gravel industry, let alone the trucking industry? The StoptheTrucks! Coalition has absolutely NO interest in race, creed, color, religion or political affiliation. This is a group of concerned citizens, from every walk of life, who are concerned only with the safety, health, economic and environmental welfare of our valley, which includes a very large hispanic demographic! Get you facts straight. Do a little research and you will see that the main focus of this coalition is NOT, and never has been, to stop the trucking industry but to RE-ROUTE the trucks to a safer alternate route (Rt. 166) which was built as a heavy truck route.
Playing the “race card” on an issue like this seems to be an ill-advised attempt by an under informed individual (or group of individuals) to incite further DISINFORMATION.
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