ADVISORY/AQMD's Clean Vehicle Fleet Proposal
12 June 2000
ADVISORY/AQMD's Clean Vehicle Fleet Proposal
--
Who: South Coast Air Quality Management District Executive Officer
Barry Wallerstein
What: Available for telephone or in person interviews on proposed
AQMD rules to require public vehicle fleets (transit buses,
trash trucks, school buses, street sweepers, public works and
other vehicles) to gradually shift to clean fuels.
When: Noon to 3:30 p.m., Monday, June 12, 2000
Where: AQMD Headquarters, 21865 Copley Drive, Diamond Bar
Background: Southern California will face a historic juncture on
June 16 when the South Coast Air Quality Management
District Governing Board considers the first of a series
of measures to require public agencies in the region to
begin a gradual shift to clean-fueled and low emissions
vehicles.
Over the past nine months, AQMD's staff has worked to
develop this series of regulatory proposals that would
require fleets of light-, medium-, and heavy-duty
diesel vehicles used to provide public services to be
replaced or expanded with only clean-burning gasoline or
alternative-fueled models. Key vehicles that would be
covered include public transit buses, trash trucks, school
buses, street sweepers and other public works vehicles.
AQMD's staff proposal closely follows a study showing that
diesel exhaust is the number one toxic air contaminant in
the region, responsible for some 70% of total cancer risk
from outdoor toxic air pollution.
The shift to clean-fuels will help minimize this risk for
pedestrians, public transit riders and school children who
are now exposed daily to diesel exhaust. Clean-fueled
heavy-duty vehicle technology -- such as natural gas and
propane -- has a long-established track record of
providing environmentally clean, economically efficient
and safe services to the public, both in Southern
California and across the nation.
