Bernson Appointed to Air Quality Board

Councilman Hal Bernson has been appointed to the board of the South Coast Air Quality Management District, the agency responsible for ensuring the air is safe to breathe in Los Angeles and nearby counties.

To the dismay of some environmentalists who view Bernson as pro-business, Mayor Richard Riordan nominated the northwest Valley councilman to fill a vacancy on the anti-smog board. The appointment was approved by mayors of the AQMD member cities, Bernson announced Thursday.

Citing his defense of the Chatsworth Reservoir as a nature preserve and as author of the city’s oak tree preservation ordinance, Bernson says his environmental credentials are solid.

The councilman, who chairs the council’s Planning and Land Use Management Committee, serves on several other regional boards, including the Southern California Regional Rail Authority and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, to which the mayor appointed him last year.