How L.A. Cleaned Its Air—and What It Means for Climate Policy Today

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KQED

News, Politics, News Commentary

4.2 • 726 Ratings

🗓️ 6 April 2026

⏱️ 51 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Los Angeles was once defined by smog that for decades choked the city with toxic haze. It obscured surrounding mountains and exposed people – especially children – to dangerous levels of lead, carbon monoxide and other pollutants. But by the early 2000s, thanks to steady public pressure and government reforms, the region’s air transformed. We talk to UCLA’s Ann Carlson about what L.A. can teach us about confronting climate change now, as the Trump administration rolls back emissions standards. Her new book is “Smog and Sunshine: The Surprising Story of How Los Angeles Cleaned Up Its Air.” Guests: Ann Carlson, professor of environmental law, UCLA School of Law; faculty co-director, Emmett Institute on Climate Change and the Environment; author, "Smog and Sunshine: The Surprising Story of How Los Angeles Cleaned Up Its Air" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Xfinity tech support. I can't get Jurassic Park back online without...
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0:19.5	Welcome to Forum. I'm Nina Kim.
0:21.6	California is suing the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for repealing the 2009
0:26.6	endangerment finding.
0:27.6	The finding has been the legal and scientific basis for regulating planet warming greenhouse
0:32.6	gas emissions from cars and trucks.
0:35.6	California is also opposing the Trump administration's proposed fuel
0:38.7	economy standards, which roll back strident Biden-era rules. Stringent ones as well. As the Trump
0:45.2	administration abandons policies to address climate change, can California help fill the void?
0:51.3	Anne Carlson thinks so. She's an environmental law expert at UCLA, former acting
0:55.7	administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration under Biden, and has written a new
1:00.3	book called Smog and Sunshine, the surprising story of how Los Angeles cleaned up its air. And
1:07.3	welcome to forum. Thank you. It's great to be here. So first, I want to ask you about the Trump administration's withdrawal of EPA's 2009 endangerment finding. Remind us why that has been seen as so monumental, remind us what the finding did.
1:21.5	So the endangerment finding was actually directed by the United States Supreme Court after a case called Massachusetts v. EPA
1:28.9	was issued by the court. And it told EPA to determine whether greenhouse gases,
1:34.8	when they're emitted by cars and trucks, endanger public health and welfare.
1:38.6	And it was the George W. Bush administration who looked at all the signs and said, yes, greenhouse gases,
1:44.8	endanger public health and welfare. And that meant that EPA then had to issue regulations to cut greenhouse
1:50.6	gases first from cars and trucks and then from other sources, sources like power plants,
	...

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