More LA schools planned near freeways
More than 60,000 Los Angeles students attend public schools within 500 feet of freeways, in apparent violation of state law, The Los Angeles Times reports.
The Los Angeles Unified School District is planning to build seven new schools near freeways, in addition to the more than 70 schools already located near highways.
Parents and scientists say putting schools near roads subjects children to pollutants that can harm their developing lungs, the newspaper said. A recent state study found increased incidence of bronchitis and asthma among San Francisco students who attended schools near large roads, the Times said.
The Los Angeles school district built almost no schools near highways after 1977, until the current building boom got under way.
A spokesman for school board president Monica Garcia said she would support the school construction if the dangers of pollution could be mitigated. // Copyright 2007 by United Press International
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