No Idle Threat: New Regulations Target Idling Vehicles (Aug/Sept 2005 Monitor)

With increasing evidence of the link between diesel soot and health problems, one focus of recent regulations has been idling diesel vehicles. In 2000, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) adopted a diesel Risk Reduction Plan with the goal of reducing emissions and the resulting health risk from diesel-fueled engines and vehicles in the state by the year 2020. Methods of reducing emissions of diesel particulate matter (PM) were identified, including more stringent emission standards for new diesel-fueled engines and vehicles, the replacement of older in-use engines with new cleaner engines, emission control strategies for in-use engines, and the use of low-sulfur diesel fuel.

In 2004, CARB adopted an Airborne Toxic Control Measure (ATCM) to limit heavy duty diesel motor vehicle idling in order to reduce public exposure to diesel PM and other toxic air contaminants (TACs) and air pollutants. The measure applies to diesel-fueled commercial vehicles with gross vehicle weight ratings greater than 10,000 pounds which are licensed to operate on highways, regardless of where they are registered. It affects public agencies, including transit agencies and public entities with heavy-duty vehicles, and private businesses, including private transit and tour bus operators, contractors, distributors, transporters, delivery services, and heavy-duty vehicle fleets.

With some exceptions, the driver of a vehicle subject to this measure may not idle the vehicle's primary engine or operate its diesel-fueled auxiliary power system (APS) for more than 5 minutes at any one location. The exceptions are:

In 2003, CARB adopted a school bus ATCM that regulates the idling of school buses and other vehicles, regardless of fuel type, near schools (grades K-12). On arrival at schools, whether in session or not, school bus, transit bus, and commercial vehicle drivers must turn off their engines and may not turn them on more than 30 seconds before leaving. If stopped within 100 feet of a school, school bus drivers must turn off their engines and restart no more than 30 seconds before departing, while transit buses and commercial vehicles may idle no more than 5 consecutive minutes. At locations more than 100 feet from schools, school buses may idle no more than 5 consecutive minutes per stop, except in traffic or to operate climate control devices and equipment required by persons with disabilities or special needs.

Trucks queuing to deliver or pick up cargo at major container ports in the state are limited to 30 minutes idling or queuing time by AB 2650 (Lowenthal) passed in 2002. The Bay Area Air Quality Management District (Air District) is responsible for enforcement of this law at the Port of Oakland.

Air District inspectors conduct regular surveillance by driving by the queues at the gates of the terminal operators' facilities. If the lines of trucks seem unusually long or slow-moving, a closer inspection is made. When the inspection indicates a potential violation, an investigation is conducted, and if the results of the investigation show noncompliance with the law, a Notice of Violation is issued. The penalty is $250 per truck. Truckers may avoid queuing by making appointments with terminal operators, but few truckers are availing themselves of this advantage, in spite of Air District outreach efforts.

Why Diesel Exhaust Is a Problem:
Most of the particles of diesel particulate matter (PM), a toxic air contaminant (TAC), are small, 10 microns or less in diameter; these can be inhaled deep into the lungs, where they cannot be dislodged and may cause cancer and lung disease.They may also have other substances including other TACs adhering to them. Studies have shown that when the level of PM in the ambient air is high, the number of hospital admissions, emergency room visits, and premature deaths in people with existing lung disease increases.

Besides PM, diesel emissions contain 40 other TACs such as benzene, formaldehyde, arsenic, nickel, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and dioxins. Most are carcinogenic and can cause other serious illnesses as well. Diesel exhaust also contains other air pollutants such as oxides of nitrogen, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, and hydrocarbons. Exposure to air pollutants may cause acute respiratory symptoms, eye irritation, and cardiovascular problems. Prolonged exposure may cause chronic respiratory or cardiovascular disease.

One of the benefits of limiting the idling time of a diesel-fueled vehicle is the reduced health risk from exposure to the pollutants in diesel exhaust (see sidebar). The vehicles' drivers and passengers, nearby workers and bystanders, and residents of impacted neighborhoods will benefit the most from a reduction of diesel emissions, since diesel exhaust tends to hang over its source. Most vulnerable to injury are children, workers, people with respiratory or cardiovascular disease, and the elderly.

Another benefit to the vehicle owner is the cost savings in fuel and engine wear and tear that result from reducing idling time. CARB estimates the savings for a small business with a fleet of seven or fewer vehicles to be $425 per vehicle per year, including capital costs. The Technological and Maintenance Council estimates that 1 hour of idling causes engine wear equivalent to 7 hours on the road. Add to that an average of 1.3 gallons of fuel for "going nowhere, doing nothing" and it is clear that reducing the idling time of diesel engines has important economic advantages for vehicle owners.

The provisions of the school bus ATCM and the heavy duty diesel motor idling ATCM may be enforced by CARB, any peace officer—including local police, sheriffs' departments, or California Highway Patrol officers—and air quality management or air pollution control districts. Enforcing agencies may conduct surveillance or inspection operations, or they may respond to complaints. The Air District refers the complaint to CARB, which has primary responsibility for enforcement (see sidebar).

When the ARB receives a complaint from a citizen about an idling vehicle, an advisory letter is sent to the registered owner, who may not be the driver, notifying the owner of the regulation and requesting a response. If CARB gets many complaints about the same vehicle or company, it will make a direct contact to discuss the problem. There are, however, few enforcement teams. A CARB inspector, a peace officer, or pollution control inspector who witnesses a violation may write a ticket, although most peace officers have not been trained to do this. A driver who violates the provisions of this ATCM may be subject to a civil penalty of $100 or more and possible criminal penalty.

The Air District has been receiving a few complaints about school bus idling and is currently developing a set of procedures, expected to be ready for adoption later this summer, for enforcing both the school bus idling ATCM and the heavy duty diesel motor idling ATCM.

The ARB staff is working on details of the heavy duty diesel motor idling ATCM second phase, which will become effective January 1, 2009 and will restrict idling of the primary engines or diesel-fueled APSs during driver rest periods. Options for complying with these idling restrictions include shutting off the engine when weather permits, using off-board and on-board electric power sources, and non-diesel-fueled APSs.

The Air District has two programs that will augment CARB's idling ATCMs and further reduce diesel emissions. The District is offering incentives to diesel-fueled vehicle owners for alternate-fueled APS units, using funds from the Carl Moyer Program to reduce diesel emissions. With funds generated by a $2 surcharge on motor vehicle license fees, the District is offering subsidies to diesel-fueled vehicle owners for installing catalytic converters to reduce emissions. The programs are ongoing and will continue as long as the money holds out.

The Bay Area Air Quality Management District (Air District) may be contacted at 1-800-334-ODOR.