Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed a controversial bill into law establishing standards for the siting and design of industrial warehouses that supporters say will better protect the health of nearby residents.

The regulations are the same as developers large swaths transformed properties along Inland Empire highways into an e-commerce logistics corridor, connecting goods shipped to Southern California ports with online shoppers across the country. While supporters of the development say it will bring jobs and infrastructure improvements, many residents living in the shadows lament pollution, traffic and neighborhood disruption.

Starting in 2026, Assembly Bill 98 prohibits cities and counties from approving new or expanded distribution centers if they do not meet certain standards. New warehouse investments will have to be located on main communication arteries or local roads that serve mainly commercial purposes. Warehouses will have to be several hundred meters away from so-called “sensitive places” such as homes, schools and health care facilities.

Additionally, if a developer demolishes a subdivision to make way for a warehouse, the bill would require two new units of affordable housing for every unit destroyed. The developer will have to provide displaced tenants with rent for 12 months.

Assemblyman Juan Carrillo (D-Palmdale), a co-sponsor of the legislation, previously described the measure as a “very delicate compromise” that was the result of lengthy negotiations among a group that included labor, health, environmental and business representatives.

While some labor organizations supported the bill, environmental, community and civic groups across the state objected to the secrecy in which the bill was drafted in the final days of the session, saying it did not hold warehouse developers to higher standards.

Several cities have also opposed legislation that, according to a Senate Appropriations Committee analysis, would require general plan updates that could result in one-time costs for cities and counties ranging from tens to potentially hundreds of millions of dollars.

Environmental advocates are particularly concerned about the bill’s setback requirements for projects involving warehouses of 250,000 square feet or larger located within 1,000 feet of homes, schools, parks or health care facilities.

In such cases, the statute requires truck loading bays to be at least 300 feet from the property line in areas zoned for industrial use and 500 feet from the property line in areas not zoned for industrial use. Warehouses would also have to meet design and energy efficiency standards.

Supporters argued that the bill would simply write into law current warehouse development practices and undermine local efforts at much greater setbacks recommended by state agencies.

IN report for 2022 on best practices for storage projects under state environmental regulations, the state attorney general’s office recommends locating storage facilities so that their property lines are at least 1,000 feet from the boundaries of sensitive areas such as homes and schools. Quotes state Air Resources Boardwhere in 2005 an 80% reduction in pollutant concentrations was estimated at a distance of approximately 300 meters from the distribution center.

This article is part of The Times capital reporting initiative,funded by James Irvine Foundationexamining the challenges facing low-income workers and the efforts being made to address themCalifornia’s economic division.

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This story originally appeared in the Los Angeles Times.