Industry wields fear and money to stop health protections
It's always been amazing to me just how much money polluters are willing to spend to try to convince lawmakers and the American public that public health and safety regulations will cost them too much money.
Seat belts and airbags, now standard features in all cars and trucks, were fought tooth and nail by the auto industry, which claimed they would be too costly and unpopular. It took the federal government 20 years to stand up to industry pressure and finally require life-saving airbags.
Anyone remember when EPA was first going to require installation of catalytic converters to reduce harmful tailpipe emissions? GM cried catastrophe and Ford claimed it would be forced out of business altogether.
Thankfully, EPA did not bow to industry pressure and catalytic converters were required starting in 1975. Ford and GM both survived and, in fact, now proudly claim credit for the dramatic reduction in vehicle emissions that followed.
Unfortunately, late last week the California Air Resources Board did succumb to intense industry pressure and voted to significantly weaken its regulations requiring reductions in California's deadly diesel pollution levels.
California has some of the worst-polluted air in the nation, and the many big rigs and pieces of heavy construction equipment that operate here are the main culprits. Diesel pollution kills thousands of Californians every year, especially those who live, work, and go to school near freeways or industrial ports. But fear and money rule in these tough economic times, and as usual, industry came in strong claiming that the tough new standards would cost them too much.
It's too bad for those good actors who already installed emission control devices on their equipment and are now at a competitive disadvantage to those who opted to spend their money lobbying the state to undo the rules. Too bad, too, for the manufacturers of diesel particulate filters, which would have been required by the new rules, and who have invested millions of dollars and planned to hire thousands of California workers to expand the green economy.
But most of all, it's too bad for the millions of Californians who will continue to be exposed to unsafe levels of air pollution for many more years.
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Ah yes. This is your typical rich baby, liberal, must happen now attitude. ALL industries are cleaning up our country already! The air we breath, the water we drink, our rivers and lakes, the ground we walk on, this whole country IS a cleaner place to live.
I just cant believe that with your level of intelligence you cannot fathom the idea that it took more then 100 years to "dirty" our country, and yet you think it should have been cleaned up yesterday! We, as a country, have made giant leaps in the reversal of pollution. But all comes in good time.
I do not, and never will, drive a brain wave distorting Prius! I drive a CHEVY 3/4 ton DIESEL pickup. I will tell you this though. When I bought my DIESEL, it got 23 mpg. Then Chevy did an EPA update to my trucks computer and my mpg went to 17 mpg. YEA EPA! The morons think that if my truck burns MORE diesel that it is better for our environment.
So all you tree hugging fools who think that throwing BILLIONS and TRILLIONS of dollars away on an overnight fix that is NOT coming.....DREAM ON!
She deletes everything that does not fit her liberal agenda. That is the liberal style. Pitiful.
Dear Mr. Carl,
Just so you know, I drive a used Prius, not an SUV. I maintain my "pampered lifestyle" on an annual salary of $39,000. However, I have been known to eat Brie cheese on occasion, so that part of the stereotype is correct.
- Betsy
Kudos to the truck owners who have already started the process of cleaning up their vehicle fleets - they will be healthier and live longer lives as a result. To those that question the value of these rules, you only need to look at the many studies - yes many scientific studies - that prove the correlation between PM/diesel pollution and premature death. No one wants the trucking industry to go out of business. But this can't be a trade off between the economy and the environment. It is about both: preserving the industry while protecting our environment.
numerous studies? by whom? the studies you quote have the same liberal agenda, make someone else change their ways, so you can live your pampered lifestyle. with out diesel trucks you would have NOTHING! how many tines have you started up your lexus suv just to go two or three blocks to the salon so you can have your nails done?
I grew up in the San Gabriel Valley in Southern California fifty years ago and remember the frequent smog alerts when we couldn’t see the mountains, a mere two miles away. Walking home from school, I would wheeze and my lungs would burn. That was before California banned lead in gasoline. Now the skies in Southern California are measurably cleaner. New regulations adopted for the benefit of everyone are initially met with anger and understandable fear by those who must adapt to a new way of doing business. Therefore, I admire the courage and foresight of the owners of Devine Intermodal who supported strengthening the diesel rule at last week’s hearing. I thank the truckers who have voluntarily cleaned up their fleets. They show that we all breathe the same air and that we’re all in this together.
California has the worst air quality largely due to diesel pollution. CARB’s role is to clean it up. We share in the disappointment over the weakening of California's cornerstone diesel clean up regulations.
Cleaning up diesel trucks and equipment is essential to reducing the prevalence of diesel soot and the sky-high asthma rates that accompany pollution in so many communities across California. And cleaning up California’s older, dirty diesels is a good investment that is estimated to yield $13 in health savings for every dollar invested, erasing the plumes of black soot that clog our lungs and skies.
We cannot waiver in our commitment to protect public health. We need to work together to support the clean vehicle industry in California and the hundreds of green jobs that it creates; and provide real relief from the suffocating pollution that so many California communities are saddled with.
-Diane Bailey
Natural Resources Defense Council
There is no doubt that the trucking and construction industries, which we as a society rely on, have suffered greatly from this recession. Jobs have been lost and trucks repossessed. Families are uncertain about their future;living day to day hoping to get more work. Unfortunately this is the situation for millions of hard working Americans, not just those in the trucking and construction industry.
Even though huge strides have been made by Californians to better our air, we still lead the nation in toxic air. The San Joaquin Valley has the worst air quality in the USA. Furthermore, there is no doubt that diesel trucks and equipment are a major source of emissions which form ozone (a gas that burns your tissue as you inhale), particulate matter (fine particulates which are coated in cancer causing substances which penetrate your lungs, arteries and cells) amongst others.
Lest us not forget about the people suffering from asthma, bronchitis, heart and lung disease and cancer. If you have ever seen a child hooked up to a machine just to breath, then you know something needs to be done. When you have to see your grandmother loose her independence because she can't go outside, then you know things can't continue the same. A lot of great people have left the Valley so that they don't have to worry about their next asthma attack. Fresno, California, where I call home, has the worst area for concentrated poverty in the nation.Some families have been fortunate enough to keep their health insurance, but the thousands of others are left with no safety net should they become ill. Chronic conditions caused by poor air quality can bankrupt people through no fault of their own.
On a larger level, air quality related health problems already cost billions in lost productivity, missed school days and health costs. All this to say there is a balance. As it stands, the costs to the industries are less than the amount we are subsidizing with our health and quality of life. For these reasons I agree with the author in that it was a sad day for millions of people struggling to breath.
PS. This is a comment on a blog, the statements made are easily verifiable, and therefore I didn't feel the need to cite.
It is a well known, well substantiated fact that diesel pollution is very toxic. The particulate matter emitted by burning diesel fuel is particularly toxic so it is welcome that CA has moved forward with clean air regulations. A simple statistic: 87 percent of air toxins in the South Coast region are from diesel emissions.
There are certainly some extremely responsible people in the industry who have moved forward with buying new and upgraded equipment to clean the air. These folks should absolutely be applauded; however, there are also many who would rather focus solely on their bottom line than the interest of public health. These regulations level the playing field for both helping to ensure that those who are rapidly adopting cleaner technologies are not put at a competitive disadvantage.
While the wisdom of what CARB has done with its changes to the regulations is very much a worthwhile debate there should be no doubt of the major impacts that diesel pollution has on our public health. It's important that CA continue to move forward with cleaning its air and laying the foundation of future economic prosperity.
As a child growing up in the San Gabriel Valley of Southern California fifty years ago, I remember the days of lead in gasoline and the many extreme days of air pollution when we couldn't see the mountains just two miles from our house. A half-mile walk home from school would make me wheeze and cause my lungs to burn. Southern California's skies are much cleaner now, thanks to the rules that took lead out of gasoline. Every new rule that benefits all of us begins with understandable anger and fear of future livelihood by those who will be regulated. I admire the courage and generosity of the owners of Devine Intermodal who spoke in favor of strengthening the diesel rule at last week's hearing and the other truckers who are making sacrifices to clean up their fleets ahead of schedule. They are helping provide a cleaner future for all of us. They remind us that we're all in this together.
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