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Particulate Matter Testing Services

Category Press Release
Publish Date 5/17/2024
Author Paul Cochrane
Title Six California Metro Areas Make the Top Ten List for Worst Particulate Matter Pollution
Introduction LA Testing provides indoor and outdoor air testing services, sampling supplies and monitoring instruments to measure particulate matter (PM) and other airborne pollutants.

Huntington Beach, California, May 17, 2024

Last month, the American Lung Association (ALA) released its 25th annual “State of the Air” report. In it, ALA lists metro locations across the United States with the worst particulate matter pollution. For year-round particulate matter (PM2.5) pollution, 6 of the top 10 most polluted metro areas were in California. They included Bakersfield, Visalia, Fresno-Madera-Hanford, San Jose-San Francisco, Los Angeles-Long Beach, and Sacramento-Roseville.

Particulate matter is the name for a wide range of particles that are small enough to be carried by the air and be inhaled. PM can be a solid or liquid, or even a mixture of both. These tiny particles may range from 0.005 µm to 100 µm in diameter. They can pose a significant threat to people’s health because they can travel deep into the lung. In fact, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), some studies suggest that long-term PM2.5 exposures may be linked to cancer and to harmful developmental and reproductive effects.

“The air quality in California is frequently impacted by everything from smog to wildfire smoke,” said Michael Chapman, Laboratory Manager at LA Testing’s Huntington Beach facility. “It’s important to note that PM from the outdoors can make its way into a home or building. Many indoor environments also have their own sources. It may come from furnaces, unvented space heaters, cooking stoves, woodstoves, environmental tobacco smoke and indoor mold growth to name just a few. For many workers, manufacturing facilities, industrial sites and construction activities can also expose them to a range of respirable particulates.”

To help identify exposure risks to PM and other airborne pollutants, LA Testing’s California laboratories offer air monitoring instruments, air testing analysis and all of the sampling supplies needed. They have even sponsored an educational video about particulate matter and indoor air quality that can be seen at: https://youtu.be/_7n6l6oQUqQ


To learn more about indoor or outdoor air quality testing services and monitoring instruments, please visit www.LATesting.com, email info@LATesting.com or call (800) 755-1794.

 

About LA Testing

LA Testing is California’s leading laboratory for environmental and indoor air quality testing of asbestos, mold, bacteria, lead, VOCs, formaldehyde, soot, char, ash and smoke damage, particulates and other chemicals. In addition, LA Testing offers a full range of air sampling and investigative equipment to professionals and the general public. LA Testing maintains an extensive list of accreditations including: AIHA LAP LLC., AIHA ELLAP, AIHA EMLAP and AIHA IHLAP, CDC ELITE, NVLAP, State of California, State of Hawaii Department of Health and other states. LA Testing, along with the EMSL Analytical, Inc. network, has multiple laboratories throughout California including South Pasadena, Huntington Beach, San Leandro and San Diego.


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