BOARD MEETING DATE: July 10, 2009
AGENDA NO. 35

REPORT:

California Air Resources Board Monthly Meeting

SYNOPSIS:

The California Air Resources Board met on June 25 and 26, 2009. The following is a summary of this meeting.

RECOMMENDED ACTION:

Receive and file.
 

Ronald O. Loveridge, Member
SCAQMD Governing Board

The Air Resources Board’s (ARB or Board) June meeting was held in Sacramento. Key meeting items are summarized below.
 

1. Health Update: The Urban Environment and Health
   ARB staff presented recent research findings from the Portland Neighborhood Environment and Health Study that demonstrate how highly walkable Smart Growth neighborhoods are associated with reductions in obesity and other health conditions linked with excess weight. The study followed approximately 1,200 adults for one year. Each participant’s residence and neighborhood was assessed for its level of walkability based on the land use mix, street layout, open and green spaces, and availability of public transit. The researchers estimated that the prevalence of obesity decreased by 25 percent for every 10 percent increase in mixed land use. However, staff noted the need for additional research to address key questions, such as whether the people living in more walkable neighborhoods chose those areas because they are inclined to be more active.
    
2. Climate Change Scoping Plan Implementation Update
   ARB staff reported on the implementation of the AB 32 Climate Change Scoping Plan approved by the Board in December 2008. Staff noted that the Board is on schedule to meet the deadlines established in AB 32 and ARB’s Scoping Plan:

• With the adoption of the proposed landfill methane control measure at this meeting, the Board will have adopted all nine discrete early action measures identified in the Scoping Plan.
• With the adoption of the Cool Car Standards at this meeting, the Board will have adopted six AB 32 regulations in 2009.
• Over 80 percent of the facilities subject to ARB’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reporting regulation have completed their reporting, and ARB staff is working directly with the remaining facilities.
• ARB staff is also coordinating GHG reduction efforts with other State agencies and public interest representatives through several groups, including the Climate Action Team (CAT), CAT Public Health Subgroup, Forestry Workgroup, and Green Jobs Council.
• ARB and Cal/EPA have convened the Economic and Allocation Advisory Committee to advise the Board on issues related to a GHG cap-and-trade system, including the allocation of cap-and-trade allowances.
   
• Staff also reported on two national initiatives that build on ARB’s early efforts: federal GHG vehicle standards, and climate change legislation now being considered in Congress.
   

3. Landfill Methane Control Measure
   The Board approved a regulation that ARB staff estimates will reduce landfill gas emissions by up to 1.5 million metric tons of carbon dioxide-equivalent gases by 2020. The regulation establishes statewide standards for existing and new gas collection and control systems at municipal solid waste (MSW) landfills. Although local air district and federal regulations already call for the use of gas collection systems and controls at many landfills, most existing control systems are focused on criteria pollutants rather than methane. As a result, MSW landfills are California’s second-largest man-made methane source, and account for one percent of the State’s GHG emissions. The Board’s action completes the adoption of the nine discrete early action measures identified in ARB’s AB 32 Climate Change Scoping Plan.
    
4. Cool Car Standards and Test Procedures
   ARB adopted a regulation designed to reduce GHG emissions by reducing the use of automobile air conditioners, which will in turn decrease gasoline usage. The regulation, which is phased in beginning with the 2012 model year, establishes window glazing standards that will result in cooler vehicle interiors, decreasing the need to use air conditioners. When fully implemented in 2016, the regulation will require manufacturers to use windows that reduce heat transmission into car and truck interiors by sixty percent. The Board also directed staff to develop a true performance standard for 2016 and later model year vehicles that would allow the use of alternative approaches, such as parked car ventilation systems and reflective paints, for cooling vehicle interiors and reducing air conditioner use.
    
5. AB 32 Implementation Fees and Emission Reporting Requirements
   The Board conducted a hearing on the adoption of a schedule of fees to fund the implementation of the California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 (AB 32). The fees are intended to fund the AB 32 implementation costs incurred by ARB, Cal/EPA, the California Energy Commission, the California Public Utilities Commission, the California Department of Food and Agriculture, and the California Department of General Services. Fee rates are designed to raise approximately $36.2 million per year to support ongoing agency costs, and $13.5 million in 2009 through 2013 to reimburse startup loans. Fees would be applied at points where fossil fuels are introduced to intrastate distribution networks, where industrial non-fossil fuel combustion GHG emissions are released to the atmosphere, and where imported electricity enters the State. The item was continued to the July 23 Board meeting.
    
6. Enhanced Fleet Modernization (Car Scrap) Program
   The Board adopted a regulation to provide the framework for implementing the Enhanced Fleet Modernization Program established in AB 811 (Nunez, 2007). This statute allocates $30 million per year for the purchase and retirement of high emitting vehicles that are not eligible for scrappage payments under the Bureau of Automotive Repair’s current Consumer Assistance Program. The enhanced program gives participants $1,000 to surrender one vehicle each and, in the San Joaquin and South Coast Air Basins, a voucher of $2,000 toward the purchase of a replacement vehicle. These incentives are increased by $500 for low-income participants. ARB staff estimates that the AB 811 budget allocation will result in the retirement of 15,000 vehicles per year, and grant 3,500 vouchers. The Board directed staff to notice and consider revisions that would allow the use of vouchers to purchase transit passes, and that would require replacement vehicles purchased with vouchers to meet GHG emission limits established by AB 1473 (Pavley, 2002), before finalizing the regulation.
    
7. Outreach and Funding Assistance for Truck Owners
   ARB staff provided the Board with an update on efforts to inform truck owners about the requirements of ARB’s in-use, on-road truck regulation, and about financial incentives available to help truck owners comply with the regulation. The December 2008 regulation requires truck owners to upgrade their diesel vehicles to reduce emissions of nitrogen oxides, diesel particulates, and greenhouse gases. Although the funding stream was interrupted when the State temporarily ceased bond sales, $90 million are now available to upgrade trucks that operate in the San Joaquin Valley or at the ports. This money is available through several ARB and local agency programs that aim to achieve emission reductions beyond those required by truck fleet rules, most commonly through early compliance. Some truckers are ineligible for funding and loan assistance, making future regulatory compliance nearly impossible. However, ARB is committed to help truck owners understand regulatory requirements and identify funding assistance possibilities.
    
8. Reductions of Emissions and Risks from Locomotives and Railyard Operations
   ARB staff presented the Board with a progress report on ARB efforts to develop recommendations for the further reduction of emissions and risks from locomotives and railyard operations. Implementation of a 2005 agreement with the railroads has reduced diesel particulate emissions at railyards by 20 percent. The three major ARB programs that reduce emissions at railyards – the 2005 agreement, ARB’s cargo handling equipment regulation, and the in-use on-road truck regulation – are expected to reduce overall railyard emissions by 50 percent by 2015. In December 2008, ARB staff released its Draft Technical Evaluation Document Regarding Potential Options to Reduce Locomotive and Railyard Emissions, which discusses emerging technologies that may further reduce nitrogen oxides and diesel particulate emissions from locomotives. Staff is now accepting comments on the Draft report. Staff expects to release a final report in August, and to provide the Board with recommendations for action at its September 2009 meeting.
    

Attachment (DOC, 68k)

CARB June 25 and 26, 2009 Meeting Agenda