Air Pollution
A 'Fare-Free-Friday' Is a Rare Thing
The Utah Transit Authority ran a one-time Fare-Free-Friday in December, thanks to sponsorship by the Salt Lake City Council and the Salt Lake County Mayor’s Office. Another sponsor will be needed to support any future iterations of Fare-Free-Friday.
'No Driving Day' in Seoul Means Free Transit Rides
South Korea has made public transit a key part of its approach to cleaning the air.
More on those Freeway-Adjacent Affordable Housing Developments
The Los Angeles Times follows-up an earlier article on the dangers of building too close to freeways. It's a trade-off that the California Air Resources Board acknowledged last April with new guidelines that recognize the dire need for housing.
California Funds Housing Near Freeways Despite Air Pollution
A Los Angeles development for homeless vets could be great news for a city in desperate need of housing, but some worry that the apartments put vets in harm’s way.
U.S. EPA Misses Deadline for Air Quality Maps; 14 States Sue
The legal battles over the Trump Administration's handling of environmental regulations at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency fired up again this week.
Caltrain Electrification Can't Come Soon Enough for Neighbors
Transit adjacent developments have their downsides when the transit is a diesel-powered commuter train, and the location is a stub-end terminal. Case in point: San Francisco's Mission Bay.
London Plan Takes a Bold Stand Against Parking
The new 25-tear London Plan would ban the construction of parking in large swatches of the city. It's just one component of an ambitious policy agenda presented by London Mayor Sadiq Khan this week.
Southern California Air Quality Paradox: Air Quality Worsens While Emissions Drop
Ozone pollution is worsening in five counties in Southern California, and the Air Quality Management District doesn't know why.
Smog So Bad United Airlines Won't Fly There
It's not the poor visibility but the air quality, ten times worse than Beijing, that has caused the airline to stop flying to New Delhi.
Urban Planning Helps to Control Air Quality for Chinese Cities
Yuan Man guest blogs about a recent article in the Journal of Planning Education and Research.
California to Implement Wood Smoke Reduction Program
The program is voluntary, providing incentives to replace older, uncertified wood stoves for cleaner replacements or alternatives. In addition to decreasing air pollution, it reduces emissions of a "super climate pollutant," black carbon.
Putting a Dollar Value on Urban Trees
According to this study, existing "leafy infrastructure" in ten of the world's largest cities confers an estimated $505 million in benefits. Planting more could magnify the effect.
Building Along Busy Corridors? Public Health Experts Urge Caution
Plans to densify a busy Vancouver corridor have prompted concern among public health experts.
Connecting the Dots Between Air Pollution and Congestion
Some of the San Francisco neighborhoods with the worst air quality are also the San Francisco neighborhoods with the most development.
Study on Health Effects of Strip Mining Stopped by Trump Administration
The mining industry felt some of the National Academies of Sciences' studies were biased against them, and its studies were unfair in the way they documented the health problems among workers.
Clean Energy's Impact on Public Health
Because of the coal power it displaces, solar and wind energy generated in the Mid-Atlantic, and Upper Midwest has an outsized impact.
Lax Regulation of Texas Air Polluters
Regular "emissions events" at Texas heavy industrial facilities cause a lot of unauthorized pollution. But few consequences mean the companies responsible don't have to crack down.
A Logistics Warehouse Near an Elementary School Raises Questions
Some are worried about the truck traffic and air pollution likely to follow after a logistics warehouse gets built within visual distance of a San Bernardino school.
Another Nail in the Coffin of the Internal Combustion Engine?
Is the movement away from gasoline and diesel-powered cars unstoppable? In response to air pollution litigation, the British government announced on July 26 that sales of gasoline and diesel vehicles would be banned by 2040.
Los Angeles Metro to Go Fully Electric by 2030
The move is risky. The agency has no electric buses now, and the last ones it operated performed so badly they had to be returned. The plan is to make the transition in phases, and hope that battery technology improves.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
City of Santa Clarita
Ascent Environmental
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions
Salt Lake City
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service
