Understanding Sources and Health Impacts of Local Air Pollution in South Central Los Angeles

Launched in January 2019, the South Central Los Angeles Project to Understand the Sources and Health Impacts of Local Air Pollution (SCLA‑PUSH) aims to help South Central LA organizations and community residents better understand the state of air quality and health in their community and engage in air monitoring and data analysis to advance community‑driven solutions in air quality policy. The project was awarded $300,000 by the AB 617 Community Air Grant Program and is led by Physicians for Social Responsibility–Los Angeles (PSR‑LA). 

Air pollution in South Central LA emanates from a variety of stationary and mobile sources. These pollution sources regularly emit harmful gases and particles, often above health standard levels, which, combined with other socioeconomic and environmental determinants of health, significantly impact the health and well‑being of South Central LA residents.

PSR‑LA SCLA‑PUSH Project Manager Paula Torrado recognizes the importance of reducing air pollution in these communities. “South Central LA communities continue to experience the health impacts of legacy air pollution and decades of environmental racism,” she said. “Our communities cannot wait any longer for tangible solutions that tackle the root causes of pollution burden. That is why our SCLA‑PUSH project is working with community residents to co‑design solutions that can protect the health of the community and foster a just transition.”

One part of SCLA‑PUSH is the Air Quality Academy, an innovative two‑day training session that helps community members learn the science of air pollution, the process of collecting data, the analysis of cumulative burden through ground‑truthing, and processes for policy and regulatory change. The academy trained 70 community residents to be Air Quality Ambassadors who now understand their community’s physical landscape and air monitoring data, and can engage in air quality policy decision making.

SCLA‑PUSH benefits from a wide set of collaborators, including three South Central LA organizations (Strategic Concepts in Organizing and Policy Education, Esperanza Community Housing Corporation, and Community Health Councils), academic partners from University of Southern California and Occidental College, technology consultant Peter Sinsheimer and design consultant Omar Ureta.

More information about SCLA‑PUSH can be found at the project’s website: www.sclapush.org/en.