STUDY TO SHOW HALF OF HISPANIC AMERICANS ARE AT RISK FROM BREATHING UNHEALTHY AIR – Report Focuses on Latinos/Air Pollution Health Impacts in AZ, CA, CO, FL, IL, MA, NV, NJ, NY, PA and TX; Leading Latino Groups to Signal Opposition to “Go Slow” Approach on Air Pollution.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – A major report to be released at 1 p.m. EDT/10 a.m. PDT Tuesday (September 20, 2011) will show that one out of two Hispanic Americans faces serious health risks due to living in counties that frequently violate air quality standards.

In response, leading Latino organizations are urging Latinos everywhere to sign on to a major campaign urging elected officials to pledge to take action to protect and strengthen the federal Clean Air Act, which is currently under fire in some quarters in Congress.

The new report is co-authored by the Natural Resources Defense Council, the National Latino Coalition on Climate Change, the Center for American Progress and the National Wildlife Federation. Problem areas highlighted in the report are major markets that are home to large numbers of Latinos in Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, and Texas, among other states.

More than 23 million Latino children, grandparents, siblings, and friends consistently face a higher risk of asthma, bronchitis, and even death from air pollution. As of 2008, 4.7 million Hispanics had been diagnosed with asthma in their lifetime. Latinos are three times more likely to die from asthma than other racial or ethnic groups.

News event speakers are:

* Dr. Elena Rios, president and CEO, National Hispanic Medical Association;
* Lillian Rodriguez-Lopez, president, Hispanic Federation;
* Adrianna Quintero, director of Latino Outreach and senior attorney, Natural Resources Defense Council; and
* Jorge Madrid, research associate, Center for American Progress

The growing U.S. Latino population, including millions who are uninsured, faces special pollution-related burdens arising from the additional unforeseen costs that come from asthma attacks, medication, hospitalizations and lost work days.

TO PARTICIPATE: You can join this live, phone-based news conference (with full, two-way Q&A) at 1 p.m. EDT/10 a.m. PDT on September 20, 2011 by dialing 1 (800) 860-2442. Ask for the “Latinos and Air Pollution” telenews event.

CAN’T PARTICIPATE?: A streaming audio replay of the news event will be available on the Web at www.nrdc.org as of 4 p.m. EDT/1 p.m. PDT on September 20, 2011.

MEDIA CONTACT: Leslie Anderson, (703) 276-3256 or landerson@hastingsgroup.com.

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