Costa, California Members Urging EPA to improve Air Quality Standards, Preserve Prescribed Burns for Catastrophic Wildfire Prevention

WASHINGTON - Congressman Jim Costa and Democratic members of the California Delegation sent a letter to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) urging them to allow the deployment of prescribed fires as EPA tightens federal health-based air quality standards. 

“California and the EPA have long worked hand-in-hand to achieve clean air gains, and no one supports the protection of clean air more than we do because we have seen how polluted air so negatively impacts public health and the quality of life for Californians. That’s why we support the EPA’s efforts to strengthen the national ambient air quality standard (NAAQS) for fine particle pollution,” wrote the members. “However, we are concerned that the proposed rule could inadvertently hinder the ability of land managers to deploy prescribed fires that help California avoid the larger catastrophic wildfires that more significantly pollute the air and threaten public safety.

Read the full letter here.