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The California Air Resources Board acknowledged last week that its research behind an off-road diesel rule missed the mark by 340 percent.
The acknowledgement comes on the heels of last year’s revelation that a CARB researcher faked his resume and repeatedly lied to his employer while developing science behind CARB’s proposed on- and off-road diesel rules.
As reported in the San Francisco Chronicle, CARB admitted last week that its scientific analysis overestimated diesel pollution levels by 340 percent in 2007. That research helped form the foundation for comprehensive off-road diesel engine rules that affect many construction businesses.
The same researcher, Hien Tran, also analyzed science behind CARB’s on-road truck and bus regulation, which has been estimated to cost the trucking industry $10 billion to comply with.
The off-road rule has been amended. The on-road rule has been amended multiple times and is slated for formal adoption at CARB’s December board meeting.
CARB’s recent on-road truck and bus amendments include not requiring particulate matter filters to be retrofitted for trucks with model year engines 1997 and older. Also, no trucks would need to be replaced until 2015. All trucks must have 2010 MY engines by 2023, and companies must replace trucks at least 20 years old between 2015 and 2020. Trucks with 2009 and older MY engines must be replaced between 2021 and 2023.
CARB says the on-road amendments should decrease the trucking industry’s burden by 60 percent.
Joe Rajkovacz, OOIDA director of regulatory affairs, said OOIDA was critical of scientific “guesstimates” in comments the Association submitted during the rulemaking process of California’s Drayage Truck Rule.
That practice of stretching science has hurt CARB, Rajkovacz said.
“Coupled with the scandal involving Tran’s falsified education credentials and Mary Nichols’ lack of transparency in disclosing that information to her own board, CARB has a credibility gap with most of industry,” Rajkovacz said.
In comments the Association filed with CARB during the agency’s process adopting the statewide drayage truck rule, OOIDA pointed out the power of CARB’s regulatory actions and the importance that its science and rules be carefully constructed.
Rajkovacz said CARB should welcome public examination of its science, or risk damaging its reputation.
“Political support for initiatives designed to clean the air we breathe are significantly harmed when both the science and process used to justify the regulations are themselves a puff of smoke,” Rajkovacz said.
– By Charlie Morasch, staff writer
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Anti-Idling Laws 
