Air Quality

CWA Air Quality Report - March 2010

March 31 deadline for ARB Truck Rule Ag Vehicle Registration
On March 31, 2010, certain on-road, heavy-duty, diesel fueled fleets will be required to report information about their business and vehicles to the California Air Resources Board (ARB) to take advantage of certain credits or provisions that are part of the Heavy Duty On-road Diesel Vehicle Regulation (ARB Truck Rule).
Situations for which fleets will need to report by March 31, 2010, include:
•    Fleets that anticipate utilizing the retirement credits provision (2025)(k)
•     Agricultural fleets utilizing the agricultural vehicle provisions (2025)(m)
•     Fleets wanting credit for Early Action (2025)(p)(1)(E)
Approved by the ARB on Dec. 12, 2008, the regulation requires affected trucks and buses to meet performance requirements between 2011 and 2023.  By January 1, 2023 all vehicles must have a 2010 model year engine or equivalent.  The regulation applies to all on-road heavy-duty diesel fueled vehicles with a gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) greater than 14,000 pounds.
 
Agricultural Vehicle Definitions
Agricultural vehicles – Agricultural fleets can delay the compliance requirements for qualifying vehicles that operate under certain mileage thresholds or meet specialty vehicle definitions in the regulation. To take advantage of these provisions, agriculture fleets must report information about all of the vehicles in the fleet by March 31, 2010. The vehicles that qualify for the delays will be required to be labeled by May 1, 2010. Fleets reporting under this provision must report vehicle information to establish a baseline fleet as it existed on January 1, 2009.
Chemical vehicle - A vehicle used exclusively to deliver fertilizer or pesticides to a farm. It must display the legally required hazardous material placard and be owned by a business with a pesticide or fertilizer license.

Farmer owned - A vehicle owned by a farming business that is used exclusively in agricultural operations or by a beekeeping business used exclusively to transport its own bees. Examples include farm trucks used to pick up supplies, mend fences, move cattle, and other farming operations, but not personal use vehicles or vehicles leased to others.
In-field vehicle - A truck that is designed for and used exclusively in agricultural operations such as manure spreaders, feed mixers, and bale processors, but does not include support vehicles used to service equipment or to transport workers, equipment or supplies. Water trucks used exclusively on farms are also included.
Farm to first processor vehicle - A vehicle used exclusively to transport unprocessed agricultural products to the first point of processing. Examples include trucks transporting crops from the farm to a packing shed, cotton to a cotton gin, or logs from the forest to the saw mill.

Ag provisions
Limited-Mileage Agricultural Vehicle – exempt from 2010 engine standard compliance until January 1, 2017, if the agricultural vehicle operates less than the miles per calendar year specified with a properly functioning odometer installed at all times:
• 15,000 miles (1995 and older model year engine);
• 20,000 miles (1996 through 2005 model year engine);
• 25,000 miles (2006 or newer model year engine).
 
Vehicles that are exempt until Jan. 1, 2023 have an annual mileage limit of 10,000 and can be any model year; specialty (see below) vehicles can be any model year and no limitation on annual limit.
 

Special Agricultural Vehicles – Exempt until Jan. 1, 2023
Each vehicle requesting specialty vehicle status must indicate a unique priority number.  Priority number one will receive top priority when selecting specialty vehicles, priority number two will be next and so on.  This will continue until all vehicles requesting specialty vehicle status is exhausted.  
Vehicles applying for specialty vehicle status will still have the opportunity to qualify as low or limited mileage agricultural vehicle provisions if they are not accepted as specialty vehicle status.
Nurse Truck - A truck, or a truck-tractor and trailer combination, designed or modified to be used exclusively for the fueling, repairing, or loading of an airplane or helicopter used for the dusting, spraying, fertilizing, or seeding of crops.
Cotton module mover - A truck, or a truck tractor and trailer combination, that is equipped with a self-loading bed and is designed and used exclusively to transport field manufactured cotton modules to a cotton gin.
Farmer owned water truck – A truck equipped with a water tank owned by a farmer, not operated for compensation, and used exclusively in agricultural operations to provide dust suppression on dirt roads providing access to agricultural fields and for the transportation of water for crop or tree irrigation or for livestock.
Feed truck at feedlot – A feed truck or mixer-feed truck designed for dispensing feed to livestock and is used exclusively at a cattle or calf feedlot. It does not include a feed truck or mixer-feed truck used at a dairy or other location other than cattle and calf feedlots.
 
The required reporting forms for the ARB Truck Rule are available at www.arb.ca.gov/dieseltruck.

Thank you to all the Agricultural Groups who have worked tirelessly on the ARB Truck Rule. We appreciate their assistance in being able to get this information out to our members.

Air Quality Task Force Director Report – January 2010

ARB Developing Rules for Off-Road Equipment—survey deadline extended

The deadline has been extended for completing a survey of on-farm equipment to help develop workable air quality regulations for self-propelled agricultural field equipment of 25 horsepower or larger. The new deadline to submit tractor, sprayer, and other farm equipment survey information is now Feb. 15, 2010.

Farm Bureau and other agricultural organizations are gathering information about off-road, on-farm equipment to use to help develop practical regulations governing diesel emissions and air quality. In 2008, farm operators helped to shape the regulations surrounding on-road diesel trucks by providing input on the types of trucks used in operations. That information helped to establish low-mileage thresholds and longer compliance schedules for truck replacement.

Known as, the “Tractor Rule,” this regulation will be promulgated by the CARB in 2010 and will apply to self-propelled off-road agricultural equipment greater than 25 horsepower. The survey asks questions related to the equipment’s make and model, engine horsepower, fuel use and hours of operation for individual pieces of farm equipment, including agricultural tractors, harvesters, self-propelled spray rigs, forklifts, and ATVs. There are approximately four questions in the survey and three versions of the survey: one for growers; one for 100 percent custom operators; and one for first-point processors.

The survey information will be compiled and submitted to the California State University, Fresno Foundation.  Your personal contact information will be removed before it is given to the Fresno Foundation. In addition, information provided to the foundation is confidential and cannot be accessed by any private or public interest.
The survey is available on-line via the California Farm Bureau Federation Web site at: http://www.cfbf.com/agoffroadsurvey/. In addition, copies are available from the Fresno State Foundation, by contacting Alex Alexandrou at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or by phone at (559) 278-8824.

Ag Alert- November 25, 2009
Survey on off-road equipment could influence regulation

Agricultural associations are asking their members to take 15-20 minutes before year-end to fill out a survey about their off-road equipment. This information will help set the stage for discussions with the California Air Resources Board as it begins work on a new rule that eventually will require gradually upgrading self-propelled agricultural field equipment of 25 horsepower or larger.

Many Farm Bureau members filled out on-road truck surveys in 2008 and those responses were crucial in helping create flexible regulations for the agricultural community in the impending on-road diesel truck rule.

“Information from our members helped establish low-mileage thresholds and longer compliance schedules for truck replacement,” said Cynthia Cory, California Farm Bureau Federation environmental affairs director. “The information from this off-road agricultural equipment survey will be used in the same manner, to help develop a rule that provides air quality improvements while taking into account the significant cost impact to California farmers and ranchers.”

Cory said farmers and ranchers should keep in mind that this new survey is completely separate and for a different purpose than the one used to develop the on-road diesel truck rule. The Air Resources Board will soon begin outreach on the on-road diesel truck rule, as the deadline for vehicle information to be submitted to the board is March 31, 2010.

CFBF and other agricultural associations will provide compliance information for the on-road diesel truck rule as soon as the Air Resources Board has completed the forms. The new on-road ag equipment rule will be another of the state’s control measures developed over the past decade to meet state and federal Clean Air Act requirements.
Once the off-road agricultural equipment survey information is compiled and an emissions inventory is developed, the Air Resources Board will develop rules with stakeholder input. Cory said the board staff currently plans to bring this measure to the board for a vote near the end of 2010.

The deadline for submitting completed surveys is Dec. 31. Since other agricultural organizations are also conducting this survey, Cory said it’s important for those who belong to more than one association to fill out the survey only once.

The survey will be provided to county Farm Bureaus, but the fastest way to complete it is online at www.cfbf.com/offroadsurvey, where one may fill out the form electronically.
There are three surveys: one for growers, one for 100 percent custom operators and one for first point processors. Agricultural producers who also operate custom business should only complete the agricultural producer survey. First point of processing facilities include packinghouses, cotton gins, nut hullers and processors, as well as dehydrators and feed and grain mills. The processor survey form includes a more detailed definition.

“We will compile all the individual equipment information and submit it without any confidential contact information attached,” Cory said.

The survey information will be submitted to the California State University, Fresno Foundation, which will compile the data for the Air Resources Board. The foundation is a private, nonprofit corporation that conducts contract research in support of regional partnerships and alliances. All information provided to the foundation is confidential and cannot be accessed by any private or public request.

CFBF will give each survey respondent an identification number that will be put in the box on the top right corner of the survey. If clarification of the provided information is needed, the foundation would contact CFBF and ask that further explanation be obtained.

For more information, contact Cynthia Cory by phone at (916) 446-4647. 

Click to download surveys

CWA
May 2009 Air Quality Report

AB 1431 – Jerry Hill (D-South San Francisco
Committee Location: Assembly Transportation
Hearing Date: April 27, 2009
Opposed: California Farm Bureau Federation, Fresno County Farm Bureau

This would require the Port of Oakland and anyone involved in goods movement at the port to establish emission reduction plans as stringent as those in place for the ports of LA and Long Beach. The Port of Oakland has been proactive in its efforts to address air quality issues concerning port operation and in March 2008 adopted aggressive goals to reduce diesel particulate emissions by 85% by the year 2020. With these stringent standards currently in place there is no need for this legislation.

The port is very important to California’s agricultural producers who export their goods. More than 40% of the Port of Oakland’s export cargo is comprised of agricultural products. California’s agricultural economy will take the brunt of the additional costs that will be passed on to those producers who use the port to move their goods to their destinations. With California’s already weakened economy and the challenge facing agriculture, we can ill afford any additional measures that will slow commerce, threaten productivity, and result in more job loss.

SB 382 – Dean Florez (D-Shafter)
Committee Location: Senate Food and Agriculture Committee
Re-Referring to the Committee on Environmental Quality

This bill would invalidate an agricultural burn permit issued in the San Joaquin Valley Unified Air Pollution Control District (SJVUAPCD) on a day on which the district prohibits the use of wood burning fireplaces.

This bill is unnecessary and duplicative since the SJVUAPCD Board has already implemented this same requirement.

 

March 2008
Debbie A. Jacobsen
Air Quality Task Force Director

Draft Diesel Truck Engine Rules outreach effort reaches World Ag Expo audience
At the World Ag Expo in Tulare this week, agricultural organizations, including CWA, initiated a broad information campaign to increase awareness among farmers, ranchers, truck operators and truck engine manufacturers about the proposed regulations that would require the replacement or retrofitting of all diesel trucks over 14,000-pound gross vehicle weight, including those trucks used in on-road farm-related activities.

The California Air Resources Board’s proposed rule calls for a two-phase approach that could ultimately impact about 400,000 in-state, on-road diesel vehicles. Phase 1 requires trucks to have a 2007 model or newer engine, or meet the emissions level of a 2007 engine. Phase 2 requires trucks to have a 2010 model or newer engine, or meet the emissions level of a 2010 engine. Truck emissions must be reduced according to a schedule that follows engine model year and a compliance deadline, the first one being Dec. 31, 2010 for truck engines older than 1998.

The only exemptions to the rule are:
· Pick-ups and other vehicles for non-commercial use, w/ GVWR<14,000 lbs
· Off-road vehicles
· “Low use” vehicles (operate less than 100 hours and 1000 miles per year)
· “Mileage Exempt Vehicles” are limited to heavy duty (HD) vehicles with a GVWR greater than 33,000 lbs operating anywhere in the state with less than 7,500 miles and 250 hours per year and requires installation of a particulate matter retrofit device. Owner operators of these HD diesel trucks who live in the counties of Alpine, Colusa, Del Norte, Glenn, Humboldt, Lake, Lassen, Mendocino, Modoc, Monterey, Plumas, San Benito, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Santa Cruz, Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou, Trinity, Tehama, and Yuba may drive the HD vehicles without a mileage limitation but they must only operate in these counties and they must still install a particulate matter retrofit device.

The World Ag Expo served as the perfect venue to reach farmers and agricultural-related businesses that will be impacted by the proposed rules. Although some changes have been made in the proposed rule, it still proposes actions that are far more aggressive than the agricultural economy can support. The agricultural industry will continue to push for revisions that can make these onerous rules more realistic with the technology that is available and without crippling the state’s economy.

Attached is an assessment of the issue prepared by the Fresno County Farm Bureau that was used at the World Ag Expo as well as across the state for discussion purposes.

Judy Case Denied ARB Board Position
Judy Case, a Fresno County Board of Supervisor, San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District Board Member and Registered Nurse, failed Senate confirmation to the California Air Resources Board last month. Governor Schwarzenegger appointed Case to the position last year. Senator Dean Florez mounted a successful campaign before her confirmation to have her ousted. She has two months from the confirmation vote to vacate the position. No word on who will next be appointed to the position.

Air Resources Board’s Diesel Truck
and Bus Rule - 2008

ISSUE: The California Air Resources Board’s (ARB) “Proposed Regulation for In-use On-road Heavy-Duty Diesel-Fueled Vehicles” threatens the California economy and agricultural industry.

ARB PROPOSED TRUCK EMISSION RULES
A statewide proposal to require older diesel vehicles to be phased-out will have a major impact on California’s economy, especially farms and other transportation-related components of the agricultural sector. The proposal, as written by ARB staff, mandates that older diesel on-road truck engines be either upgraded and/or replaced to help reduce emissions.

All diesel trucks and fleets operating within the state with a gross vehicle weight rating greater than 14,000 lbs would be affected. (GVWR is the maximum allowable total weight of a road vehicle or trailer that is loaded, including the weight of the vehicle itself plus fuel, passengers, cargo, and trailer tongue weight.) A preliminary estimate of vehicles affected includes over 400,000 in-state registered trucks and 1.2 million out-of-state trucks that operate within California.

The proposed rule would require that truck emissions be reduced to meet the following:
Phase 1 – Trucks must be a 2007 model or newer truck, or meet the emissions level of a 2007 truck;
Phase 2 – Trucks must be a 2010 model or newer truck, or meet the emissions level of a 2010 truck. Truck emissions must be reduced according to the following schedule:

Phase 1
Engine Model Year	Compliance Deadline as of December 31
Pre-1998	2010
1998 – 2002	2011
2003 – 2004	2012
2005 and newer	2013
Phase 2
Pre-2004	2017
2004 - 2006	2018
2007	2019
2008	2020
2009	2021

The only exemptions to the rule are:
Pick-ups and other vehicles for non-commercial use, w/ GVWR<14,000 lbs
Off-road vehicles
“Low use” vehicles (operate less than 100 hours and 1000 miles per year)
“Mileage Exempt Vehicles” are limited to heavy duty (HD) vehicles with a GVWR greater than 33,000 lbs operating anywhere in the state with less than 7,500 miles and 250 hours per year and requires installation of a particulate matter retrofit device. Owner operators of these HD diesel trucks who live in the counties of Alpine, Colusa, Del Norte, Glenn, Humboldt, Lake, Lassen, Mendocino, Modoc, Monterey, Plumas, San Benito, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Santa Cruz, Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou, Trinity, Tehama, and Yuba may drive the HD vehicles without a mileage limitation but they must only operate in these counties and they must still install a particulate matter retrofit device.

REGULATORY COSTS
ARB’s timetable for implementing the proposal is far more aggressive than the agricultural economy can support. Agricultural equipment, including trucks, have much longer life spans than most other industrial equipment because of the seasonality of agriculture (typically used for short spans of the year). In addition, agricultural investment returns are typically low, making it difficult to buy newer equipment. Not withstanding, agriculture will pay for this rule twice: first for its own new/retrofitted trucks; and second, for the cost of suppliers/haulers to buy/retrofit their trucks. Suppliers and haulers can just charge more for their services and tax on a surcharge. Farmers and ranchers cannot pass along the cost of this or any other regulation. Unlike any other commodity, agricultural commodities are in the class of price-takers, not price-makers.

2004-07 year engines may be able to be retrofitted at a cost of $15,000-35,000 per truck, assuming current prices stay fixed, but they would be mandated to replace the engine again based on Phase 2 standards. The retrofits can be very difficult to maintain and are problematic because the ingredients they collect are considered hazardous material. This is yet another new burden on farmers and ranchers.

Most retrofitted engines older than 2004 cannot meet the required standards, thus a 2004-07 powered truck would have to be purchased, plus retrofitted to meet the 2007 engine standards. Many of agriculture’s trucks are uniquely specialized for farm work, which additionally increases the cost of the replacement vehicle. Replacement vehicle costs will vary sharply, but for most the cost range will likely be $50,000-300,000. Conservatively, this rule is estimated to cost transporters in the state $25 billion.

AGRICULTURE’S SOLUTION
Agriculture is working to educate ARB on how the proposal would impact operations by outlining the major concerns on behalf of farmers, ranchers and agricultural business owners and offering alternative measures that will help accomplish the goal of cleaning California’s air without unreasonably forcing many in agriculture out of business.
Please go to www.fcfb.org for further information on this and other issues important to California agriculture.

FUTURE RULES
In addition to the truck rule this year, ARB will be proposing an on-farm diesel equipment rule next year. This rule would target tractors, harvesters, and all other equipment used in agricultural production. The combination of just these two rules will cost California’s farmers and ranchers billions of dollars—a cost they cannot pass on.