Citizens of Hollister don’t usually think of themselves as
living in one of the cleanest cities in American, or of being
residents of the San Jose area, but for the purposes of a study
published in Reader’s Digest, both are true.
Hollister – Citizens of Hollister don’t usually think of themselves as living in one of the cleanest cities in American, or of being residents of the San Jose area, but for the purposes of a study published in Reader’s Digest, both are true.
Greater San Jose, including the counties of San Benito and Santa Clara, was recently ranked by the publication as the second cleanest metropolitan area in America.
The article, which analyzed data for the 50 largest cities in America, scored each city on air and water quality, industrial pollution, superfund hazardous waste sites, and sanitation.
San Jose and its surrounding counties scored 40.71 out of 50 possible points, nearly four points lower than America’s cleanest city, Portland.
According to spokesperson Ellen Morgenstern, the magazine placed more emphasis on water and air. In his article, Author Derek Burnett put it this way: “It’s of little value to have pristine streets if what you drink and breathe are killing you.”
The article called San Jose an area “known nationwide for its clean streets, fresh air, and healthy lifestyle.”
In fact, the air quality is better in Hollister than in San Jose, and including San Benito County may have improved San Jose’s overall ranking.
Air Quality Planner Bob Nunes, who has spent the last 12 years working at the Monterey Bay Unified Air Pollution Control District, said that Santa Clara county has had more instances of air pollutants exceeding the maximum allowable levels than San Benito County. The MBUAPCD monitors the quality of the North Central Coast Air Basin, which includes Monterey Bay, San Benito and Santa Cruz counties.
Nunes said that Santa Clara County has a different air base than San Benito and, unfortunately, more pollution.
“Hollister is much cleaner than the Santa Clara Valley, especially in terms of ozone,” Nunes said.
The water quality in Hollister may also be slightly better than in San Jose.
According to Mark Clifford, Hollister’s Utilities Supervisor, the drinking water in Hollister meets all federal and state standards.
“We’re in pretty good shape,” Clifford said. “Overall our water quality is just as good if not better than San Jose’s.”
Water quality reports show that levels of total dissolved solids are higher, but levels of both Coliform bacteria and nitrates are lower, in Hollister than San Jose. None of the levels in either city exceeded state or federal standards.
County Supervisor Anthony Botelho said that the Reader’s Digest distinction was merited.
“I’m hoping that we will be able to maintain that distinction for many generations to come through good planning,” Botelho said.
Botelho said that while growth is necessary, the environmental impacts of that growth can be offset by proper planning.
Fellow County Supervisor Reb Monaco agreed.
“We’ve learned a lesson from our neighbor to the north (Santa Clara)” Monaco said. “We’ve learned to plan carefully and make sure that we maintain a clean environment.”
Monaco said that although the county is currently doing well, the environmental health of the county must be monitored so that if a problem creeps up, it can be dealt with swiftly.
Brett Rowland covers education for the Free Lance. He can be reached at 831-637-5566 ext. 330 or [email protected].
