CALIFORNIA ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
AIR RESOURCES BOARD
Air Resources Board
Board Hearing Room, Lower Level
2020 "L" Street
Sacramento, CA
June 10, 1993
9:30 a.m.
AGENDA
Page
93-7-1 Public Meeting to Consider a Draft Report: 001
Planned Air Pollution Research: 1993 Update and
Joint Meeting of the Research Screening Committee
and the Air Resources Board.
93-7-2 Public Meeting to Consider Research Proposals: 097
93-7-3 Public Hearing to Consider the Adoption of 148
Amendments to the Emission Inventory Criteria
and Guidelines Regulation Adopted Pursuant to the
Air Toxics "Hot Spots" Information and Assessment
Act of 1987.
93-7-4 Public Hearing to Consider Amendments to 429
Regulations Regarding California Exhaust Emission
Standards and Test Procedures for 1985 and
Subsequent Model Heavy-Duty Diesel-Engines and
Vehicles, to Specify Standards for 1994 and
Subsequent Urban Bus Engines.
June 11, 1993
8:30 a.m.
Those items listed above which are not completed on June 10 will
be heard beginning at 8:30 a.m. on June 11.
ITEM NO.: 93-7-1
Public Meeting to Consider Adoption of a Report Planned Air
Pollution Research: 1993 Update and Joint Meeting of the Research
Screening Committee and the Air Resources Board.
RECOMMENDATION
The Air Resources Board staff recommends that the Board approve
the report Planned Air Pollution Research: 1993 Update.
DISCUSSION
In establishing the State's approach to achieving clean air, the
Legislature has: declared that an effective research program is
an integral part of the broad-based statewide effort to combat
air pollution in California; directed the Air Resources Board to
administer and coordinate all air pollution research funded, in
whole or in part, with state funds; directed the Air Resources
Board to establish objectives for air pollution research; and
directed the Air Resources Board to appoint a Research Screening
Committee to give advice and recommendations with respect to air
pollution research projects funded by the State.
In order to comply with these mandates from the legislature, the
Board meets each year with its Research Screening Committee to
review the Board's research program, as outlined in the Planned
Air Pollution Research: 1993 Update. This document is prepared
by the staff, with guidance from the Research Screening
Committee.
SUMMARY AND IMPACTS OF ACTION
The report describes major ongoing research projects and new
projects to be funded in Fiscal Year 1993-94. More detailed
descriptions of the projects, a summary of recently completed
projects, and the Air Resources Board's research budget for
Fiscal Year 1993-94 are shown in the Appendices.
Board approval of the report Planned Air Pollution Research: 1993
Update will authorize ARB staff to proceed with the research
program outlined in the report.
ITEM NO.: 93-7-3
Public Hearing to consider the Adoption of Amendments to the
Emission Inventory Criteria and Guidelines Regulation Developed
Pursuant to Requirements of the Air Toxics "Hot Spots"
Information and Assessment Act of 1987.
RECOMMENDATION
The staff recommends that the Board adopt the proposed amendments
to Sections 93300-93355, Titles 17 and 26, California Code of
Regulations, which amend the Emission Inventory Criteria and
Guidelines Regulation.
DISCUSSION
The existing criteria and guidelines regulation (the regulation
was approved by the Board in April 1989, as required by the Air
Toxics "Hot Spots" Act. The regulation was amended in 1990 to
include procedures for biennial updates of emission inventories
and to include specified facilities which emit less than ten tons
per year of criteria pollutants.
The regulation, if amended, would require significant risk
facilities to update their emission changes biennially, but would
allow facilities to focus their updated on those specific devices
which drive the facilities' air toxics risks. High priority
facilities would have to submit updates only for devices with
significant changes. The facilities would also be allowed to
focus the update on devices that drive the facility risk. All
other facilities would be required to complete only summary forms
except under certain circumstances under which they would be
required to do emission updates.
Other proposed amendments to the regulation would: allow
facilities to be removed from the program when they no longer
meet applicability requirements and are not of significant risk;
allow facility operators to report "ND" (for non-detect) for
reporting source testing-derived emissions which are below
laboratory list of detection levels; delete unnecessary reporting
forms; eliminate some source test requirements; and, make other
clarifications and improvements to the emission inventory
process.
SUMMARY AND IMPACT
Adoption of the proposed amendments to the regulation is not
expected to result in any health or environmental impacts. The
proposed amendments to the regulation will substantially reduce
the emission inventory update reporting requirements resulting in
major reductions in costs and workload for all facilities subject
to the regulation. The amendments will create additional
responsibilities for districts to determine which facilities must
submit updates. However, they will have less update plans and
reports to review. Consequently, we do not expect the districts
to require additional resources. The program will focus the
majority of resources on significant risk and high priority
facilities, thereby maintaining the effectiveness of the program
to identify air toxics "hot spots".
ITEM NO.: 93-7-4
Public Hearing to Consider Amendments to Regulations Regarding
California Exhaust Emission Standards and Test Procedures for
1985 and Subsequent Model Heavy-Duty Diesel-Engines and Vehicles,
to Specify Standards for 1994 and Subsequent Urban Bus Engines.
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that the Board adopt the proposed amendments to
the "California Exhaust Emission Standards and Test Procedures
for 1985 and Subsequent Model Heavy-Duty Diesel-Engines and
Vehicles", specifically for 1994 and subsequent urban bus
engines.
DISCUSSION
Senate Bill 135 (Stats. 1991, ch. 496) and Health and Safety Code
section 43806 provide that the ARB shall adopt new emission
standards and test procedures for transit buses to be implemented
no later than January 1, 1996. This statute directs the ARB to
set emission standards that would reflect the use of the best
emission control technologies expected to be available at the
time the standards and procedures become effective. In adopting
the standards, the ARB shall consider the projected costs and
availability of cleaner burning alternative fuels and low-emission
vehicles compared with other air pollution control
measures. Pursuant to section 43806, the ARB has consulted with
the engine manufacturers, transit agencies, utility companies,
and other related industries in developing the regulations.
The proposed regulations would align California with the recently
adopted federal Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA)
regulations which require engines used in 1994 and 1995 model
;year urban buses to meet a 0.07 g/bhp-hr particulate matter (PM)
standard and used in 1996 and later model year urban buses to
meet a 0.05 g/bhp-hr PM standards with a 0.07 g/bhp-hr PM in-use
standard. Also, the proposed regulations would require all 1996
and later California urban bus engines to meet a mandatory oxides
of nitrogen (NOx) standard of 4.0 g/bhp-hr. Further, it is
proposed that optional, more stringent, NOx emission standards be
adopted, beginning with the 1994 model year, to facilitate mobile
source emission reduction credit programs, which may encourage
transit agencies to purchase cleaner operating urban buses. To
help identify those engines that are certified to the proposed
optional emission standards, it is proposed that information be
added to the emission control label for each engine. This
information would identify the engine by the optional NOx
emission standard it is certified to, and would state that it
meets all other applicable California emission standards for that
particular engine model year. Supplemental emission control
labels may be used as an option. Other proposed changes include
adoption of the new federal urban bus definition that would
clarify that urban buses are passenger-carrying vehicles,
generally greater than 33,000 pounds gross vehicle weight rating,
which use heavy heavy-duty engines. Also, the proposed
regulations would align California regulations with the recently
adopted federal extended useful life requirement of 10
years/290,000 miles for heavy heavy-duty diesel engines used in
urban buses, for the 1994 and later model year PM standard.
SUMMARY AND IMPACTS
The proposed regulations would result in significant
environmental benefits. The staff has estimated the statewide
emissions benefit of the proposed mandatory emission standards
for urban buses as 4.4 tons per day of NOx and 1.5 tons per day
of PM by the year 2010. These reductions would account for 20
percent of the NOx and half of the PM emissions from urban buses
statewide.
The optional emission standards could provide increased
flexibility to stationary sources in meeting regulations by
allowing participation in an air pollution control district's
mobile source emission reduction credit program. Given this
premise, there would be no air quality benefits with the proposed
optional standards, in that, the vehicle emission reductions
would be offset by the allowed increase in stationary source
emissions. However, an air pollution control district has the
right to require that a percentage of the emission reductions be
earmarked to improve air quality. Based on an optional 2.5
g/bhp-hr NOx standard as compared to the current 5.0 g/bhp-hr NOx
standard, a total of about 6 tons of NOx would be reduced over
the lifetime (12-year, 500,000 miles) of a bus. The overall
lifetime NOx reduction for a fleet of buses will vary according
to the optional NOx standards the buses are certified to and the
number of buses in the fleet.
There are several technical options available for manufacturers
to develop diesel bus engines that would comply with the proposed
mandatory 4.0 NOx standard. Staff has assigned a "worst case"
cost estimate for these technologies as being a $5,000
incremental cost over a baseline trap-equipped urban bus engine.
Also there would be a slight fuel penalty when using exhaust gas
recirculation (EGR) technology that equates to approximately a 1
cent per mile fuel cost difference between a diesel-trap bus
($0.26/mile) and a diesel-trap bus with EGR ($0.27/mile).
Therefore, the fuel cost for the lifetime of a diesel-trap bus
(500,000 miles) is $130,000 and the lifetime fuel cost of a
diesel-trap bus with EGR and related engine modifications is
$135,000. The total incremental lifetime cost difference is
$10,000.
The emission reduction over the lifetime of an urban bus that
meets the proposed mandatory NOx standard is expected to be 2.4
tons of NOx. Therefore, the overall cost effectiveness of the
mandatory proposal is approximately $2.10 per pound of NOx
reduced.
The cost effectiveness of the proposed optional emission
standards is not important for this regulatory action given that
these standards are not mandated. However, for informational
purposes, the cost effectiveness of the optional emission
standards using a 2.5 g/bhp-hr NOx standard for a 200-bus fleet
is estimated to be between $3.10 and $5.90 per pound of NOx
reduced for using methanol urban buses and between $0.70 to $3.50
per pound of NOx reduced for using CNG urban buses.
Manufacturers of urban bus engines and transit agencies that are
subject to the proposed regulations, including incremental costs
for meeting the proposed, more stringent, emission standards,
test procedures, and other requirements of the regulations. The
proposed regulations may also impose compliance costs on
manufacturers directly affected, if manufacturers choose to use
the optional supplemental labeling requirement provided by the
regulations.
Staff has determined that the maximum incremental cost to
manufacturers for complying with the regulations is estimated to
be $5,000 per bus or $1.5 to $2 million for an average California
sales projection of 300 to 400 urban buses per year.
Staff estimates that the maximum statewide incremental cost to
transit agencies to purchase new California urban buses (600-800
engines) to meet the mandatory emission standards for 2 years is
approximately $3.3 to $4.3 million (bus capital costs + fuel
cost). This cost is based on the assumption that the same number
of engines will be sold after the 1996 implementation of the
mandatory urban bus standards and takes into account the EPA's
adoption of a 4.0 g/bhp-hr NOx standard for 1998 and later heavy-duty
engines (including buses). However, the actual costs will
be unique to each transit agency, dependent on the number of new
buses that are purchased.