BOARD MEETING DATE: January 8, 2010
AGENDA NO. 25
PROPOSAL:
California Air Resources Board Monthly Meeting
SYNOPSIS:
The California Air Resources Board met on December 9 and 10, 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) December meeting was held in Sacramento. Key meeting items are summarized below.
- Approval of Research Proposals
ARB approved the expenditure of $2.4 million to support eight research proposals, including six studies that will provide detailed information about the makeup and movement of pollutants in Southern California in support of the CalNex 2010 program. CalNex 2010 is a collaborative study with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) that is designed to provide data that can inform air pollution and climate change policy discussions. The Board also approved funding to study nitrogen oxide emissions from dairy systems; and to study health effects associated with ambient particulates in the Central Valley.
- Amendments to the Regulations for Limiting Ozone Emissions from Indoor Air Cleaning Devices
ARB previously adopted a regulation that limits the amount of ozone that can be emitted by indoor air cleaning devices. At this month’s meeting, the Board amended that regulation to extend the deadline for package labeling requirements for certified indoor air cleaners, and to clarify safety testing requirements.
- Update on the Truck and Bus Regulation and the In-Use Off-Road Diesel-Fueled Fleet Regulation
When the Board adopted its regulation for reducing emissions from in-use trucks and buses in December 2008, the Board also directed ARB staff to conduct workshops and report back on the potential impact of the economy on rule implementation. The Board’s directive specified that the staff should include recommendations, if appropriate, on ways to address impacts that the state of the economy might have on truck emissions and on the availability of incentive funds to help fleets meet the regulation’s control requirements. Staff presented its report and recommendations at this Board meeting.
ARB staff’s analysis indicated that under both slower and faster economic recovery scenarios, overall emissions from heavy duty trucks in 2010 and 2011 would remain below the levels anticipated when the regulation was adopted. As a result, the analysis suggested that some control requirements set to take effect in 2010 and 2011 could be relaxed without exceeding emissions levels anticipated in air quality plans. However, the analysis also indicated that this would not be the case in 2014, when full implementation would be needed to meet ARB’s commitments to achieve reductions needed for PM2.5 attainment in the South Coast and San Joaquin Valley. Many truck fleet owners testified at the hearing that the economy was in worse shape than anticipated when the initial rule analysis was prepared, and will recover more slowly than projected in staff’s most recent analysis. They further testified that the State’s incentive funding was insufficient or, like much bank financing, not available.
The Board addressed questions about the health benefits report that was included in the rule development package. The report was compiled by an ARB employee who falsified his academic credentials. The fact that this information was not disclosed to all Board members at the adoption hearing has prompted questions about the integrity of the adoption process. However, the Board did not question the fundamental science reflected in the peer-reviewed report. The Board directed staff to prepare another report on the health benefits of the rule and to return in April 2010 with proposed regulatory changes reflecting the Board’s discussion.
- Adoption of a Regulation for the Management of High Global Warming Potential Refrigerants for Stationary Sources
The Board approved a leak detection and repair regulation that will reduce emissions of high global warming potential refrigerants from large commercial refrigeration systems. Businesses that will be affected by the new regulation include grocery stores, food and beverage processors, cold storage warehouses and industrial processes with systems containing 50 pounds or more of refrigerant. Leak detection and repair requirements will become effective January 1, 2011, and facility registration and reporting requirements will be phased in from 2012 to 2016. In adopting the regulation, the Board directed ARB staff to add an exemption for military tactical equipment. The new regulation complements the South Coast Air Quality Management District’s Rule 1415. Reducing GHG emissions from commercial and industrial facilities was the fifth largest greenhouse gas reduction measure identified in the AB 32 Climate Change Scoping Plan. The adopted rule is expected to eliminate 8.1 million metric tons of CO2-equivalent emissions by 2020.
- Informational Update on the Zero Emission Vehicle Regulation Revisions
ARB staff provided an update on the development of Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) technologies and the role these technologies can play in achieving the State’s GHG emission goal. Staff’s analysis indicates that conventional hybrid electric vehicles (HEV) will not provide the reductions needed to reach the passenger vehicle GHG emission reduction goal – an 80 percent reduction, from 1990 levels, by 2050. Staff also noted that market forces alone are not likely to produce the levels of ZEV sales needed to ensure that passenger vehicles provide their fair share of progress towards California’s GHG goals. Staff concluded that a regulatory mechanism might be needed to ensure the levels of ZEV sales needed to meet GHG reduction targets. Staff also discussed complimentary policies the Board could undertake to ensure the development of a sufficient ZEV fueling infrastructure.
Attachment (DOC, 25k)
CARB December 9 & 10, 2009 Meeting Agenda