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  - Health costs to Californians, so far this year, of port related pollution in California.
The Ports of LA  Long Beach Clean Air Action Plan passed in November 2006, and 1500 clean trucks service the ports.
Port Pollution Facts
  • In Long Beach, 20% of children under 17 have been diagnosed with asthma - nearly twice the national average.
  • $67 million: The cost of respiratory problems associated with ports in CA.
  • Diesel Exhaust is responsible for 84% of the cancer risk from air pollution in the Southern California Air Basin.
  • $19 BILLION: Cost on health system due to port pollution. average.
  • Each day the Port of LA emits over 30 tons of NOx, while a half a million cars emits less than 24 tons and the average power plant emits less than 5 tons.
  • 2,400 - Estimated number of premature deaths caused by diesel emissions.
  • 800,000: Number of children that pollution reduction could save from lung disease.
  • Each day the Port of Los Angeles emits over 30 tons of NOx, while a half a million cars emits less than 24 tons and the average power plant emits less than 5 tons.

Editorial: Pitiful, Simply Pitiful
Editorial: Pitiful, Simply Pitiful

But air board can redeem itself this week

The Sacramento Bee

The California Air Resources Board has much on its menu these days -- but not enough cooks in the kitchen.

Asked to do more with the same number of people, the air board's employees have been working hard to implement the state's new law to control greenhouse gases while still carrying out basic responsibilities of reducing smog and toxic pollutants.

Sadly, the Air Resources Board itself doesn't seem similarly committed to the important tasks at hand. Under pressure from the construction industry, the board last month delayed a decision on reducing toxic diesel particulates from construction equipment. Then, on Thursday, it voted to ask the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for an 11-year extension before the San Joaquin Valley's air could be cleaned up to meet federal smog standards.

Think about that: Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is threatening to sue the U.S. EPA for failing to quickly review a waiver for one of California's climate laws. Now, after claiming that the Bush administration is shirking its environmental responsibilities, the governor and his air board are going to the EPA, hat in hand, and asking for an 11-year extension on meeting health standards in one of our most polluted regions.

It's pitiful. But it could get more pitiful for the governor this week when the air board meets Thursday and Friday to approve "early action measures" required under Assembly Bill 32, the state's global warming law.

There are some farsighted items on the air board's proposed list, including the governor's proposed "low-carbon fuel standard," which aims to spur the development of fuels and vehicles that generate less carbon dioxide.

But overall, the CARB's proposals are too incremental and not ambitious enough to deal with the tight timelines of the state law. It is especially curious that the administration isn't attempting to quickly reduce greenhouse emissions from the state's ports, since such an effort could also reduce diesel and smog emissions that are sickening nearby residents.

Even the low-carbon fuel standard is questionable as an "early action" because it could take several years to develop. Accurately measuring the carbon intensity of new alternative fuels will be a major challenge. If mistakes are made, the crop tillage and harvesting needed to produce ethanol, for instance, could generate more greenhouse gases than these fuels are intended to reduce.

Many longtime supporters of CARB will be watching this week to see if the agency can maintain its four-star reputation, or is in need of some new chefs. The answer will also say a lot about just how committed the governor really is to the hard work of cleaning up California's air.

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