Should LA Ports Trade Away Air Quality for Expansion? Schwarzenegger to Decide

Should expanding the Los Angeles and Long Beach Ports increase air pollution? Not according to a proposal that will be decided by Governor Schwarzenegger this week in Sacramento.

The bill, AB 2042, by Assemblyman Alan Lowenthal, requires the Air Resources Board and the South Coast Air Quality Management District to establish a baseline for air pollution for the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. The bill would then ask the ports not to exceed that baseline in the years to come.

“We have cleaner technology available today,” said Susan Smartt, executive director of the California League of Conservation Voters, the political arm of California’s environmental movement. “Expanding the Ports should not mean increasing air pollution. AB 2042 is a common sense approach to allow for port expansion while keeping the air pollution in check. With high childhood asthma rates becoming an epidemic, Governor Schwarzenegger should keep his campaign promise to reduce air pollution and protect the health of our kids by signing this bill.”

The Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach are the largest contributors to the Los Angeles Air Basin’s air pollution. The volume of goods moving through the ports has quadrupled in the last seven years and is projected to quadruple again in the next fifteen years. The ports generate approximately 181 tons of NO_x (oxides of nitrogen, identified as a dangerous air pollutant) per day—the diesel trucks serving the ports alone emit 47 tons of NO_x.

“Given the anticipated growth at the ports, and the fact that almost all of the ships, trucks and equipment used at the port are fueled by cancer-causing diesel, it is important to do as much as we can to limit the increase in toxic emissions while the ports grow. This bill will not only protect the health of our children and communities, it will help drive clean energy technologies for ports around the globe,” stated Smartt.

The bill passed the State Senate on a 21-16 vote and awaits the Governor’s signature. Schwarzenegger has until September 30th to sign the bill.