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Latest News
March 16th 2013
February 19, 2013 OVER 200 ELYSIAN VALLEY RESIDENTS SECURE COMMITMENTS FROM LOS ANGELES CITY COUNCIL DISTRICT 13 CANDIDATES REGARDING METROLINK POLLUTION.
Candidate forum presented by the Elysian Valley Riverside Neighborhood Council secured commitments on funding a health risk assessment to accurately gauge the ill effects of the Metrolink Central Maintenance Facility which sits on the banks of the LA River and relocating altogether Metrolink’s Central Maintenance Facility, given the community health and sound issues, as well as the ecological and recreational resources of the LA River. The following candidates support relocation: Mitch O'Farrell, Emile Mack, Robert Negrete, Alexander Cruz de Ocampo, Josh Post, José Sigala, and Matt Szabo. Full story and video footage from the candidate forum can be read and viewed here.
The South Coast Air Quality Management District (AQMD) Board voted unanimously to replace up to 20 Tier 0 Metrolink diesel locomotives with Tier 4 locomotives from the Carl Moyer Program. This will help clean up some of the toxic DP & N0x around Cypress Park, Elysian Valley, Glassell Park and Atwater Village in the next few years. Implementation of the new engines are to be expected in late 2016 to 2017.
November 2012Northeast LA Residents For Clean Air along with Metrolink Representatives have recently created a NEW WORKING GROUP to resolve short term and long term goals in reducing the air and noise pollution coming from the Metrolink's Central Maintenance Facility in the Elysian Valley. The working group members will include elected officials, local residents and community organizations. Please check back in the coming weeks for a full list of members in this new working group. First meeting to convene sometime in March 2013.
October 2012 Northeast LA Residents For Clean Clean Air and other Los Angeles community leaders are currently writing letters to the Southern California Air Quality Control District (AQMD) in support of Metrolink being awarded Carl Moyer funding. This grant, if obtained, would be used directly for upgrading or retrofitting the Metrolink's locomotive fleet to a much cleaner burning Tier 4 engines. The grant award is upwards of $50 million dollars over a number of years. Stakeholder groups are also welcome to submit support letters. Deadline November 16th, 2012.
The following representatives have endorsed such funding going to the Metrolink.
· Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) · Breathe LA · Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce · Inland Action · Northeast Los Angeles Residents for Clean Air · Los Angeles River Revitalization Corporation · Jardin Del Rio · Congressmembers Schiff, Bass, Sherman, Becerra · California State Senators Huff, De Leon, Carol Liu, Wyland, Pavley, Runner, Strickland · California State Assemblymembers Cedillo, Carter, Lowenthal, Gatto, Eng, Portantino · Los Angeles Mayor Villaragosa Sample support letters
August 10, 2012 Northeast LA Residents for Clean Air visited the Metrolink Board meeting downtown to give public comment about the diesel particulate matter generated at the Metrolink Central Maintenance Facility along the LA River in Cypress Park. The group requested many items, including a health risk assessment, expanded and accelerated engine upgrades or replacements, exhaust hood technology, plug-in maintenance power, changes in procedure, aggressive mitigation fundraising, and internal communication and study.
Photos by Susan Nickels / images : 1 2 3
January 25, 2012 Community meeting with Metrolink The following is video footage from the follow-up meeting with the Metrolink from the Oct 19, 2011 community meeting (details below).
Part 1
Part 2
January 5th, 2012, Elysian Valley and Cypress Park residents hosted community leaders in a roundtable with Air Quality Management District (AQMD) officials. Community leaders discussed grave concerns regarding Diesel Particulate Matter (DPM) and Nitrous Oxide (N0x) which are being released daily in neighborhoods surrounding the Metrolink Central Maintenance Facility on San Fernando Road. Community leaders discussed requesting a Health Risk Assessment for neighborhoods affected by the rail yard; reduced hours and days of operation; limits on engine idling time; public review of fuel use records; upgrading the fleet by retrofit or purchase of cleaner burning engines; use of a tow wagon to move trains within the yard; plugging in to an external power source rather than using the diesel engines for power within the yard; "hood" or diesel particulate filtration on the current engines within the yard.
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A special thanks goes the the following people for participating:
Henry Hogo-AQMD-Assistant Deputy Executive Officer, Mobile Sources, Science and Technology AdvancementCher Snyder- AQMD-Senior Enforcement Manager Dr. Anupom Ganguli- AQMD-Public Advise & Assistant Deputy Executive Officer, Legislative & Public Affairs Marc Carrel- AQMD-Program Supervisor, Legislative & Public Affairs Mark Abramowitz- SCAQMD-Board Consultant
Representaives of the following: East Yard Communities for Environmental Justice The Coalition for Clean Air Urban Semillas Elysian Valley Riverside Neighborhood Council Greater Cypress Park Neighborhood Council LA 32 Neighborhood Council Greater Echo Park Elysian Neighborhood Council Elysian Valley Neighborhood Watch Elysian Valley Arts Collective Glassell Park Improvement Association North East Trees Friends of the LA River The River Project Community Residents' Association for Parks Bureau of Sanitation, Watershed Protection Division SEIU Local 721
Congressman Xavier Becerra - 31st Congressional District State Senator Kevin de Leon ---22nd Senate District City Councilmember Ed Reyes, 1st District Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa
Special thanks to Assemblymember Gilbert Cedillo, 45th District staff who helped set up the meeting with the AQMD Thank you Metrolink and AQMD officials for meeting with the residents and community organizations of Elysian Valley and Cypress Park on October 19th! Also many thanks to all the residents and community organizations who joined us on this night in what can be considered an informative night for all of us. Our hope is this can be a new beginning in solving some challenging issues. Below is a link to a story about the the Oct. 19th Metrolink community meeting .
Metrolink and AQMD officials meeting with the residents and community organizations of Elysian Valley and Cypress Park on October 19th. Arturo Chavez far left, Gary Crary, Metrolink assistant executive officer for operations far right.
Elysian Valley neighborhood council President Steve Appleton (left) and other concerned residents engaged in Metrolink meeting.
Click on each photo to enlarge.
MetroLink Central Maintenance Facility Guided Tour on October 15th 2011.
District director for the office of Gilbert Cedillo, Arturo Chavez (centered) is shown around on a tour of MetroLink's Central Maintenance Facility along with other neighborhood council members and residents of Elysian Valley and Cypress Park.
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