BOARD MEETING DATE: July 8, 2005
AGENDA NO. 25

Mobile Source Committee

SYNOPSIS:

The Mobile Source Committee met Friday, June 24, 2005.
Following is a summary of that meeting.

RECOMMENDED ACTION:

Receive and file.

Jane Carney, Chair
Mobile Source Committee

Attendance

The meeting started at 9:05 a.m. Present: Committee Chair Jane Carney, Committee Vice-Chair Roy Wilson (via videoconference), Committee Members Jan Perry (via videoconference), Jim Silva and Gary Ovitt.

ACTION ITEMS:
 

1)

Rule 1610 Old Vehicle Scrapping: Proposed Demonstration Pilot Program Lee Lockie, Director of Area Sources, presented the proposal to the Committee. She began the presentation by giving a brief background on the District’s Vehicle Scrapping Program and the specific requirements for scrapping. The key element is the requirement that the vehicle be driven to the scrapping yard by the owner for determination of eligibility of the car for the program (must be operational and have three years of life left). AQMD has received a proposal to amend a scrapping plan to provide for a temporary storage location where the vehicle can be held until a specified date (no more than) 12 days) when the District can inspect and approve the vehicle for inclusion in the program. Many people may want to sell their car but are not able to attend on a specific day. The number of cars can increase if the process is made easier for the seller. The proposal would allow designation of an authorized agent to pick up the cars and keep them in a secure location until inspection by the District. The scrapper would make a preliminary assessment of program eligibility prior to receiving the vehicle from the owner. The term for the pilot project would be six months and a report would be given back to the committee by staff at that time. Jane Carney expressed concern about the sellers having assurance that the car would in fact be scrapped. The company explained that the contract with the seller would state a specific date by which the car would be scrapped or returned. James Silva held the same concern that there be some provision that the car cannot be sold to a third party. Jane Carney asked Kurt Wiese to review the contract to be sure that the vehicle can only be scrapped or returned to the seller. Supervisor Wilson moved to approve the program and the motion was seconded by Jan Perry.

INFORMATION ITEMS:
 

2)	Status Report on AQMD’s Clean Air Choice Program Sam Atwood, Media Officer Manager, introduced AQMD media consultant Manuel Valencia of Valencia, Perez & Echeveste, and Kevin White, who works with auto dealerships in providing information on lowest-emitting vehicles. Mr. Atwood reported the Clean Air Choice Program is a consumer education program to reduce mobile source emissions by encouraging new car buyers to purchase the lowest-emitting vehicles available. This is accomplished through voluntary labeling of qualifying vehicles by new car dealers; community outreach events; "wrapped vehicles"; its own website, and voluntary labeling of qualifying vehicles in local government fleets. In addition, a "Dealership of the Year" award has been created as an incentive to sell qualifying vehicles. The District plans to continue outreach at community events and dealerships; seek manufacturer participation; and seek partners for public service announcements. Supervisor Wilson suggesting including the Jacqueline Cochran Air Show held in Thermal in the Coachella Valley scheduled in November. Supervisor Ovitt suggested participation in the Fourth of July Parade in the City of Ontario. Councilwoman Perry expressed interest in getting the information out to cities in her jurisdiction and asked that Mr. Atwood contact her. Greg Adams asked about a proposal to have the Department of Motor Vehicles include the list of qualifying vehicles with their notices of registration renewal. Dean Saito explained that the DMV has difficulty sorting out those individuals who reside in the South Coast Basin. It was suggested that it not be restricted and that the information be sent to all residents of California. Henry Hogo suggested that a link be placed on the DMV’s webpage to the Clean Air Choice website. Supervisor Silva asked if there was information on the cost-savings and life of the vehicle for the consumer. Mr. Atwood reported that the cost savings in fuel is widely publicized and that most of the cars run on gasoline and should last as long as any other vehicle. Supervisor Silva also suggesting looking into having manufacturers provide rebates for these vehicles.
3)	Report on Proposed Amended Rule 1186.1, Less Polluting Sweepers, and Proposed Amended Rule 1196, Clean On-Road Heavy-Duty Public Fleet Vehicles Mr. Dean Saito, Fleet Rules Implementation Manager, reported on the proposed amendments to Rule 1186.1 and Rule 1196. The rules currently include a provision for exemption if an alternative fuel station is not located within five miles of where the fleet is domiciled. This provision of the rule sunsets July 1st of this year and AQMD staff believes that there is still a need for this provision in the rule. Staff is recommending that both rules be amended to extend the provision of this requirement one additional year. Jane Carney asked how often we get requests for exemptions. Mr. Saito indicated that the AQMD has received fewer than five requests for this provision for each rule. Ms. Carney then inquired about the exemption request for Rule 1196, for which Mr. Saito indicated that there have been a considerable number of requests for unavailability due to the numerous heavy duty categories for heavy duty fleet for public entities. He indicated that staff spends considerable time reviewing technical infeasibility certificate requests (TICRs) for Rule 1196 because of the unique categories of heavy duty equipment. Mr. Hogo indicated that AQMD staff has streamlined the TICR process by listing on the Fleet Rules website the unavailable platforms and cited the example of those heavy-duty vehicles greater than 350 hp.
4)	Update on School Site Selection Guidance Document Staff presented an update on the development of the School Site Selection Guidance Document. The Board approved a contract with ICF Consulting to survey school districts in the AQMD boundaries regarding plans for new schools, and to develop an air quality guidance document. The survey was sent out earlier this year, with 46% of the school districts responding. Preliminary tabulation of the responses showed that 270 new schools are planned by 2012. A draft document was prepared and sent to several school districts, environmental groups, and the California Department of Education for review. A focus group was held in the beginning of June to receive feedback. Based on the comments received, the document is being revised. The survey database and guidance document are scheduled to be completed by the end of June. Additionally, staff noted that an advisory summarizing recent studies on traffic and health was sent earlier this year from the AQMD Public Advisor to all school districts within the AQMD's boundaries. The summary is also available on the AQMD website.
5)	Rule 2202 Activity Report Rule 2202 Summary Status Report submitted, no comments.
6)	Monthly Report on Environmental Justice Initiatives – CEQA Document Commenting Update Written report submitted. No comments.
7)	Other Business None.
8)	Public Comment None.

The meeting adjourned at 9:48 a.m.

Attachment

Attendance Roster

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