Key air pollution standards may be raised in California and the nation, which could result in more stringent regulations and requirements for the production and sale of zero-emission cars, federal and local officials said.Earlier this month, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency approved a plan for ridding the skies of microscopic soot particles that lodge deep in the lungs and cause asthma, cancer and even premature death - a move that could save the lives of 3,000 Southlanders.
Officials hint the EPA also will lower the threshold for ozone, the lung-scorching gas produced when pollutants from factories, home uses and automobiles cook in sunlight, producing smog. Officials with the Air Quality Management District say that EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson has indicated she may lower the acceptable ozone standard from 0.075 parts per million to between 0.06 and 0.07 ppm - a large drop.
That could happen as early as July 29. The EPA adjusted the standard in 2008 but had indicated it would lower it again.
"At some point they have to do it. The medical and scientific evidence is very clear; the standard needs to be made more stringent," explained Sam Atwood, spokesperson for the AQMD in Diamond Bar.
Most scientists say the current standard does not protect public health. The EPA's scientific panel recommended adjusting the standard but that was rejected by President George W. Bush. President Obama promised to use science to determine
the safest ozone levels, but so far, Obama has put off adjusting the standard on several occasions.Studies have shown that children growing up in the San Gabriel Valley have advanced aging of their lungs - an effect created by ground-level ozone.
"The bottom line is that this region needs zero- or near-zero emission technologies for all sources of air pollution, from businesses to trucks to trains, to meet current air quality standards. A new ozone standard will make that need even greater," Atwood said.
Right now, the movement on how to fight tiny soot particles, known as PM2.5, and possible changes to the ozone standard, are taking place on the bureaucratic levels in Washington, D.C. and Sacramento. However, once new levels for an air pollutant are established, under the federal Clean Air Act each state must develop new plans and new ways to attain the tougher clean air standard.
For PM2.5, this is already taking place. The pending EPA approval for at least a large portion of the AQMD plan for reducing fine particulate matter amounts to a stamp of approval for the tough tack. No new programs will result but existing ones will be allowed to continue.
The California Air Resources Board, in charge of reducing pollution from moving sources, is already busy ratcheting down diesel emissions from trucks, buses, off-road construction equipment, ocean-going vessels and so-called "Drayage trucks" that move goods from the Port of Los Angeles and Port of Long Beach throughout Southern California. California is the only state in the nation with a program in place aggressively targeting diesel emissions from existing diesel trucks and engines, according to the EPA.
The California Air Resources Board program affects about one million vehicles in California.
"These fleets or owner-operated trucks that haul goods up and down the state will have to do something, either replace their engines or install particulate filters," said Mary Fricke, CARB spokesperson.
The state ARB gives out vouchers for $35,000 to qualified truck owners, she said. Though these rules have been in place for a few years, Fricke said the CARB is working with truck owners to make the transition easier by offering $35,000 vouchers and by presenting free classes on rules.
The state is operating under a deadline to meet the fine particulate standard by 2014.
"Businesses are having a tough time right now financially," Fricke said. "We are working with businesses so we can meet the 2014 attainment goal."
But while both state air pollution agencies are pleased that the EPA may approve the fine particulates plan, Atwood points out that the EPA said it would not approve a portion of the plan dealing with "contingency measures" because they won't yield enough pollution reduction.
Leaving even a portion of the AQMD's plan unapproved could trigger federal sanctions, which could mean the four-county area would lose billions in federal transportation dollars, Atwood said. It could also mean that emissions offsets would be frozen, preventing business expansion and new businesses from opening, he added.