Why SF neighborhoods are up in arms over new environmental rankings that could cost them money

California recently updated the system it uses to decide which communities get top priority for state environmental cleanup funding, and dozens of groups in the Bay Area aren’t happy with it. 

In July, the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment released its fifth version of CalEnviroScreen, a data tool that maps environmentally burdened communities in California. The tool added two new indicators – diabetes prevalence and small air toxic sites, such as gas stations – and incorporated updated metrics, such as levels of lead detected in children.