CARB Adopts Strict Emissions Regulations

California Air Resources Board
Approves Off-Road Diesel Emissions Regulations

By Robert Carlsen

Despite a vigorous opposition from the construction industry, the California Air Resources Board voted unanimously July 26 to approve tough new off-road diesel emissions standards for the state’s estimated 180,000 vehicles used in construction, mining, airport ground support and other industries.

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Mike Lewis, chair of the Coalition to Build a Cleaner California and executive vice president of the Construction Industry Air Quality Coalition, says that the coalition is “disappointed CARB chose to disregard the input of construction contractors and workers by adopting an unrealistic regulation. With just a few changes, the board had the opportunity to make this a win-win for California’s environment and economy. Instead they adopted a rule that is not viable in the real world.”

Lewis adds that the coalition and other construction industry groups have worked and negotiated “in good faith with the board and its staff over the course of the past several months to develop an alternative that would have made California’s construction fleet the cleanest in the world while keeping the economy moving forward.

“Unfortunately the rule adopted today will do nothing but move California’s economy backward. Jobs will be lost. Businesses will cease to exist. And the state’s infrastructure rebuilding efforts will suffer. It is a shame CARB decided to embrace a regulation that does not work in practice and will negatively impact the state.”

During the 15-day written comment period following the CARB decision, the Associated General Contractors of California has vowed to “exhaust all efforts to ensure that AGC’s voice will continue to protect contractors’ businesses and their employees,” says Tom Holsman, AGC-CA’s CEO.

AGC of California, in conjuction with the Construction Industry Air Quality Coalition, have already established a multi-prong approach that will continue the fight and are reviewing every regulatory and legal option available to the industry, Holsman adds.

The CARB adopted “the most dramatic decision ever taken by a state regulatory agency that will have far reaching economic and financial impacts on the construction industry as well as the state’s economy,” according to an AGC statement. “The board’s decision to adopt harsh regulations regarding the reduction of diesel particulate matter and oxides from oxygen from off-road diesel vehicles will go into effect January 2009 with full implementation by 2010.”

AGC of California and the CIAQC members say they worked in good faith with CARB to develop an alternative that would have made California’s construction fleets some of the cleanest in the world while keeping the economy moving forward. The ruling by the CARB board means that the construction industry will be “forced” to pay billions of dollars for compliance, according to AGC-CA.

AGC-CA says the following was accomplished on behalf of the industry during the CARB meeting: 

• Proposed language establishing full credit for early retirement on all engines;
  
• Excluded the various unions non profit training programs;
• Mandating that CARB staff provide the board with an early review verification by January 2009 (one year earlier than provided in the regulations) on engine availability to meet demand and a total technology review on all verifiable emission control devices (VDECs);
• And ARB staff must review and report to the board the fiscal impacts to small and medium-sized companies due to the financial constraints established by the regulations in 2009.

CARB also approved an aggressive plan by South Coast and San Joaquin air districts to double the amount of engine turnover within their areas, called the SOON plan.

Contractors who participate in this program will be asked to increase their rate of turnover from the required 8% CARB has asked for to 15% for every year SOON is in existence. The air district said they will offer subsidies for surplus reductions, but penalties for not strictly abiding by the program will exist.

Given the current climate with CARB and these air quality districts at this time, AGC of California says it is not supporting this program.

“I am extremely disappointed that our efforts to articulate the construction industry’s position on a cost-effective and technology-based alternative to the CARB staff and environmental communities was embraced by only three of the nine CARB board members,” says AGC member Gary Rohman of Visalia’s ECCO Equipment and president of CIACQ.

AGC of California says it will conduct seminars in the near future for equipment owners regarding the regulations adopted by CARB.

CARB, however, signaled the vote as a victory for cleaner air. “This regulation will prevent thousands of premature deaths and reduce health care costs for those suffering from respiratory disease such as asthma," says Mary Nichols, ARB chairman. “It is also the first of its kind in the nation, and, as has occurred with other California regulations, could serve as a model for other states to follow.”

CARB says that diesel particulate matter, or diesel “soot,” was identified as a toxic air contaminant in 1998. In 2000, the ARB established California’s Diesel Risk Reduction Plan, which aims to reduce diesel emissions to 85 percent below 2000 levels by 2020. Other sources of diesel particulate matter such as transit buses, trash trucks, cargo-handling equipment and ship auxiliary engines have already been addressed through regulations, along with diesel fuel.

CARB’s new regulation will reduce emissions by installation of diesel soot filters and encouraging the replacement of older, dirtier engines with newer emission controlled models. By 2020, diesel particulate matter will be reduced by 74 percent and smog forming oxides of nitrogen by 32 percent, compared to what emissions would be without the regulation.

The requirements and deadlines vary depending on fleet size. For small fleets, which include small businesses or municipalities with a combined horsepower of 2500 or less, implementation does not begin until 2015. Medium fleets, with 2501 to 5000 horsepower, have until 2013, while large fleets, with over 5000 horsepower, must begin complying in 2010. Affected vehicles include bulldozers, loaders, backhoes and forklifts, as well as many other self-propelled off-road diesel vehicles.

CARB claims the rule’s impact on business would cost industry up to $3.5 billion over its lifetime.

The coalition, however, says it would cost more in the neighborhood of $13 billion to $30 billion and the loss of thousands of jobs.

The coalition, which includes  labor – carpenters, laborers and operating engineers among others; the construction industry – contractors, engineers and builders; and others affected by CARB’s proposed regulations, such as the California Ski Industry Association, the Air Transport Association; and infrastructure stakeholders like the California Building Industry Association and the California Alliance for Jobs, proposed an alternative approach which would clean up the air while keeping the most number of construction companies in business and workers employed; the bidding environment at its most competitive; the Rebuild California bond program on schedule; and construction cost increases to a minimum.

Lewis says the coalition’s proposal would have achieved better emission reduction for 2015 than the CARB proposal, keep the same starting date as the CARB proposal, require annual reporting to demonstrate progress toward the goal, provide maximum flexibility for contractors to reach the target, allow more time at the back-end for new Tier 4 engines to enter the fleet (estimated to be approximately 2014/2015), permit each fleet to determine how best to achieve the reductions, and give credit to those fleets that provide early emissions of both NOx and PM.

Lewis adds that the most significant difference between the CARB proposal and the alternative plan is moving the 2020 goal for large fleets to 2025, which is necessary in order to allow more time for Tier 4 engines – which will achieve all the emission targets without any further retrofitting and will not be available until 2014/2015 – to enter the market and be acquired by contractors.

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