Four most polluted national park sites are in California
Four most polluted national park sites are in California The Mercury News
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Sustainable Development Goals and National Parks
A couple years ago, as part of the Sierra Club’s Outdoors for All campaign, Roberto Morales took a group of low-income Los Angeles area residents north to Sequoia National Park to help with a forest restoration project.
They planned to hike several miles during the trip. But Morales ended up cutting the hike short because the park was so smoggy he worried the air would trigger asthma attacks or other health issues for the volunteers.
“For us it was just a teachable moment,” Morales said. “Even though these are beautiful places, we can’t really get away from pollution.”
Nearly 97% of 399 key national park sites are experiencing “significant” or “unsatisfactory” levels of human-caused ozone pollution, according to a new study from the National Parks Conservation Association. Mark Rose, a California-based program manager for the nonprofit, said weather and geography sometimes can make air quality even worse in our parks than in the neighboring cities where that pollution originates.
The four U.S. parks with the worst air are in California.
Most Polluted National Parks
- Joshua Tree National Park
- Sequoia National Park
- Kings Canyon National Park
- Mojave National Preserve
These parks regularly have such poor air quality that exposure poses risks to visitors, employees, and neighbors, as well as the flora and fauna that call these protected places home. Yosemite and Death Valley national parks also rank in the top 10 for most unhealthy air.
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![A climber leaps across boulders at Joshua Tree National Park...]()
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![Visitors walk along a tail at Joshua Tree National Park...]()
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