Is there a relatively smog-free buffer zone along the L.A. coast? (Los Angeles: house, living)

[ca_north]

By "L.A." I mean the whole coastal strip from Santa Monica to San Clemente.

Despite improvements in vehicle & factory emissions (thanks to government regulations hated by "TrueAmericans") the Los Angeles area still has some of the nation's worst smog, due to bowl geography. That's what the data shows, in relative terms.

I have always wondered if living near the beach improves air quality, since readings might be taken further inland or averaged out. I'm talking about any area in a strip along that coastline, if one could afford it.

Where can you find air quality data in fine detail? Or is L.A. just one big mess with no steady coastal breeze to push the crud inland (where it drifts all the way to the Grand Canyon)? I like the maps here, but they have limited resolution. I'm looking for technical data, not just anecdotal reports. The air might feel clean on a given day at Venice Beach, etc.

[EscapeCalifornia]

The breeze generally pushes the smog inland so air along the coast is cleaner. The exception would be during Santa Ana winds when the flow is reversed.

[ca_north]

Originally Posted by EscapeCalifornia

The breeze generally pushes the smog inland so air along the coast is cleaner. The exception would be during Santa Ana winds when the flow is reversed.

How wide would that cleaner-air stretch be, if you can guesstimate? I'm trying to find technical measurements more than anything. Living right on the beach would of course be impractical unless one was homeless.

[JohnG72]

Originally Posted by ca_north

How wide would that cleaner-air stretch be, if you can guesstimate? I'm trying to find technical measurements more than anything. Living right on the beach would of course be impractical unless one was homeless.

I think your concerns are unfounded.

My ex gf lived in Mar Vista. That is a few miles from the ocean. I don't know what could be measured, but there was never ever smog when I went to her places. My brother lives on a bluff near there. From there I can see there is never ever smog visable over anywhere west of the 405 FWY.

My parents live a couple blocks from the beach in OC. Never smog there either.

I live Downtown LA. There is smog sometimes, but for whatever reason, this summer has been amazingly clear most days. SGV and IE are another story.

[hockfan86]

I live in Westwood and the air is definitely very fresh here, very noticeable difference from when I lived in Los Feliz. Though even in Los Feliz it wasn't by any means unbearable. On the map I am about 4 miles from the ocean.

[ca_north]

Originally Posted by JohnG72

I think your concerns are unfounded.

My ex gf lived in Mar Vista. That is a few miles from the ocean. I don't know what could be measured, but there was never ever smog when I went to her places. My brother lives on a bluff near there. From there I can see there is never ever smog visable over anywhere west of the 405 FWY.

My parents live a couple blocks from the beach in OC. Never smog there either.

I live Downtown LA. There is smog sometimes, but for whatever reason, this summer has been amazingly clear most days. SGV and IE are another story.

I'm sure you're right to some extent, but it's not just visible smog that makes the air bad. For example, when you look at most car tailpipes you don't see brown smoke. It can become photochemical smog after sunlight affects it, but it's not the greatest thing to breathe at any level.

City-Data has pollution graphs for each city and they never look healthy in the L.A. basin. You see improvements when you go north toward Simi Valley or Ventura, etc. and escape that bowl. If anyone has pinpoint pollution data for the coast, that's what I'm seeking.

[PureHapa]

Check the data and map here:

Air Quality Management District.

From my house I can see the entire basin including Long Beach - and visibly, Long Beach seems to be the "line" where the air is noticeably better than the rest of the basin. According to the map on the AQMD site, Orange County is better than Los Angeles County. There is no coastal strip delineation on their map.

From my experience as well as anecdotally, the beach cities have cleaner air than, say, areas east of the Harbor Freeway. The areas I've personally experienced the worst air in L.A County are in The Valley north of Ventura Blvd.; Pasadena, and Burbank.

[Lumerian Feast]

Originally Posted by PureHapa

Check the data and map here:

Air Quality Management District.

I know this is a bit off-topic, but I checked that site daily during the Station Fire, when we evacuated down to Huntington Beach for a few days. The foothill area was purple. We went home when it got down to red & orange.

[Exitus Acta Probat]

Good air quality is half the reason we live on the Westside.

[edmcrocker]

the westside has a thing worse than smog. it's called no sky july aka june gloom aka may gray aka fogust. yeah, it's great when it can be sunny and warm about a mile inland but on the beach it's cool and marine layered up.