M3.4 Air Pollution

·       Who and what are the top polluters in your zip code?

The top polluters in my zip code, 95111, are:

• STRONGWELL CORP.
• CHEVRON PRODS. CO. SAN JOSE TERMINAL
• JENNINGS TECH. L.L.C.
• LUMILEDS LIGHTING US L.L.C
• EQUILON SAN JOSE TERMINAL
• IBM
• UNIVAR USA INC.
• MMC TECH. INC.
• MICREL INC.
• GLASFORMS INC.
• SOUTH BAY CIRCUITS INC.
• APPLIED BIOSYSTEMS
• ECOLAB INC.

The top chemical pollutants in my zip code are:

Rank         Chemical Name                      Pounds

• 1    AMMONIA    130,175
• 2    FORMALDEHYDE   54,992
• 3    HYDROCHLORIC ACID      36,542
• 4    STYRENE      32,188
• 5    METHYL TERT-BUTYL ETHER    17,500
• 6    N-METHYL-2-PYRROLIDONE       16,034
• 7    METHANOL  12,272
• 8    N-HEXANE    3,921
• 9    NITRIC ACID            3,506
• 10  TOLUENE      2,145
• 11  BENZENE      1,613
• 12  DICHLOROMETHANE        1,296
• 13  XYLENE (MIXED ISOMERS)         1,095
• 14  METHYL ISOBUTYL KETONE      1,070
• 15  MANGANESE COMPOUNDS         828
• 16  ACETONITRILE       761
• 17  HYDROFLUORIC ACID      550
• 18  COPPER         535
• 19  1,1-DICHLORO-1-FLUOROETHANE         500
• 20  MERCURY COMPOUNDS  457

·       What percent of the homes in your zipcode have lead-based paint?

Only 1 percent of houses in Santa Clara County have a high risk of lead hazards.

·       Are there Superfund sites in your zip?  (In your BLOG, make sure to tell us what a Superfund Site is)

In 2004, this county ranked among the dirtiest/worst 10% of all counties in the U.S. in terms of the number of designated Superfund sites.

There are 15 Superfund sites in the county that caused contamination of drinking water sources.

Just in case you don’t know what a Superfund site is, it’s any location that has been contaminated with hazardous waste and is identified by the EPA for long-term response to clean up the material contaminations.

·       What can you tell us about the Superfund sites that are near where you live?

One of Superfund sites close to my house is the FAIRCHILD SEMICONDUCTOR CORP.’s manufacturing plant located in south San Jose. According to the report, soil and groundwater were contaminated with various volatile organic compounds. Fortunately, potential threat of direct contact with contaminated soil has been eliminated. Private local drinking water well surrounding the site have been sealed. The contamination of groundwater has been reduced via ongoing treatment. Hence, the potential health threat from consuming the groundwater continues to decrease. Also, no drinking water well was shut down due to contamination.  

·       What did you learn about the air quality in your zipcode?

I’ve learned that in 2003, my country was ranked among the 10% worst of all counties in the U.S. in terms of person-days in exceedance of national air quality standard for ozone. In addition, this county also ranked among the 10% worst of all counties in the U.S. in terms of an average individual’s added cancer risk from hazardous air pollutants.

·       How about the water quality?

According to the Clean Water Act Comparative Ranking, the county has 16.12% of surface waters with impaired or threatened uses and 29 impaired waterbodies. Keep in mind that the accuracy of these findings are affected by data limitations.

·       How did your zipcode fair on a social justice / environmental justice basis?

I was not surprised to see that when the distributions of burdens of chemical hazards of toxic chemicals, cancer risks, Superfund sites, and facilities emitting criteria air pollutants show that people of color are more exposed to chemical releases, added risk, Superfund sites, and industrial facilities compared to their white counterparts. The same trend also applied when comparing between low income and high income families, families below poverty and families above poverty, and kids below poverty and kids above poverty. Although the difference is not so big, it still resonates with the environmental justice problems that are relevant everywhere in the U.S.