Cities Get 'F' For Air Quality

"Altogether, 38 counties, mostly grouped in Southern California and the Central Valley, were given failing grades for their levels of the two air pollutants. Another 16 — including San Mateo, Santa Cruz, San Francisco, Marin and Monterey — received an "A" under the lung association's 10th annual "State of the Air 2009" report.

"Although there have been some improvements, the health and lives of millions of Californians are at risk because of our dirty air," said Dr. Tony Gerber, a San Francisco physician and volunteer with the lung association, during a telephone news briefing Tuesday.

While local air quality officials welcomed the scrutiny, they also quibbled with how the grades were measured: The study lumped together areas with heavy smog, such as Los Angeles, with counties that had moderate levels of the pollutants, such as Santa Clara, giving both an 'F.'"