Slow air quality progress in Bakersfield, California
Annual average fine particle pollution levels in Bakersfield, California, which had the worst particle pollution nationwide in the American Lung Association's 2023 State of the Air report, declined from 22.8 micrograms per cubic meter in 2000-2002 to 17.8 in 2019-2021. EPA's new standard would lower the maximum permissible level from 12 micrograms to 9.
Line chart showing average annual particle pollution levels ranging between 15 and 23 micrograms per cubic meter, well above the current target of 12 and the new level of 9.
