A Healthy Breathing Environment For Every Bay Area Resident

Toxic Air Contaminants

Learn about the Air District’s emissions inventory for toxic air contaminants.

Certain air pollutants have been classified as toxic air contaminants, or TACs, because they are known to increase the risk of cancer and/or other serious health effects, ranging from eye irritation to neurological damage.

Negative health impacts from nearly 200 TACs have been estimated using toxicity information and methods developed by California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment.

The Bay Area’s air toxics network includes 16 monitoring sites, five of which were established by the California Air Resources Board and are maintained by the Air District. The remaining 11 sites are operated by the Air District.

Community Air Risk Evaluation Program

The Air District’s Community Air Risk Evaluation, or CARE, program estimates and reports both local and regional impacts of TACs in the Bay Area. Information from the CARE program is used to design and focus effective mitigation measures in areas with highest impacts. Documents are available that describe the TAC modeling emissions inventory development for 2005, 2010, 2015 and 2020.