author of the report and a clean vehicles engineer at UCS’s Berkeley office.
“Construction pollution is taking a heavy toll on the health of all Californians,” Anair said. “Construction equipment being used to build our hospitals shouldn’t be responsible for filling them up.”
UCS was founded in 1969 by faculty members and students at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who were concerned about the misuse of science and technology in society. Their statement called for the redirection of scientific research to pressing environmental and social problems.
Anair said UCS is concerned about construction because it is one of the largest sources of diesel pollution in the state, but yet many people are unaware of its ill effects.
“This is the first statewide analysis of construction-related pollution,” Anair said. “We see (tractor-trailers) every day on the street and when we are stuck on the freeway, but most see construction equipment only occasionally. One month it’s here, another month it’s somewhere else.”
When a person is exposed to particulate matter released by the burning of diesel fuel, lungs can become irritated to the point that they lose their ability to function, said Kevin Hamilton, a registered respiratory therapist and director of the Asthma Education and Management Center at Fresno Community Hospital.
“It’s like razor blades going down into the lungs,”Hamilton said.“Everybody is impacted by this type of pollution. I cannot emphasize how this type of pollution has no regard for age”
With development coming at a rapid pace, Santa Monica and the rest of Los Angeles County were labeled “high risk” zones by UCS and experienced the greatest degree of statewide health and economic damage from construction equipment emissions.
During the last fiscal year, 2,800 construction permits were issued in Santa Monica, ranging from small water heater replacements and home remodeling to larg-er scale projects, city officials said.
Santa Monica has experienced an abnormal level of development in the last few years, both private and public, with the expansion of Santa Monica College and large-scale construction projects such as the Main Library, Public Safety Building, RAND Corp. headquarters, Civic Center Parking Structure, Santa Monica-UCLA Medical Center and several mixed-use developments in downtown.
“For at least the last five years, there has been a very high level of development activity within Santa Monica. I would even say that is has been unprecedented... (and) we are still getting a very high level of projects for review and approval,” said Craig Perkins, director of environmental and public works management for City Hall.
“We are certainly seeing a peak period, but to be fair, a lot of that development is redevelopment of sites. Property values are high and there is a strong desirability to be here,” Perkins added. “People want to improve their homes.”
A NEED FOR GREEN MACHINES City Hall has tried to maintain “peace and quiet” in neighborhoods as well as protect the environment by regulating the number of construction projects that can proceed simultaneously. There are also regulations restricting hours of operation and the delivery of materials so that trucks are not left idling for long periods of time, creating traffic problems.
As part of the Green Building Program, contractors are required to minimize stormwater runoff and are encouraged to salvage reusable materials and divert at least 60 percent away from landfills. That said, municipalities are prevented from regulating emissions.
“Santa Monica can do some things with the elements we do control, but most of it is obviously not controlled by Santa Monica,” Perkins said.
The Environmental Protection Agency adopted emissions standards for new engines in 2004, but benefits from federal regulations will not be fully realized until some time after 2030 because construction equipment lasts for decades, according to scientists with UCS, which is calling for construction companies to phase out the oldest, most polluting equipment, and install new engines and retrofit others with clean technologies.
The City Council has asked that the use of best management practices be mandatory for all city-funded projects and has been willing to pay for the added expense, however, equipment using alternative fuels is hard to find and there is a concern no firm could be found to complete projects, Perkins said.
“What we have done is encourage and support efforts by the (South Coast) Air Quality Management District (AQMD) to continue with their programs regionwide that look to improve air quality,” Perkins said.
District officials said construction equipment is a significant concern because dirty diesel engines have a long life. At least 60 percent of today’s heavy duty construction equipment fleets were manufactured before 1988 and produce higher emission than do later models.
District officials have been asking the California Air Resources Board to approve the AQMD’s air quality management plan, which would require companies to replace or retrofit older engines. The plan would have to be approved by the EPA as well, said Sam Atwood, a spokesman for the AQMD.
“If we can get that to happen, the plan would have a lot more teeth than a simple request from this agency or anyone else,” Atwood said.
In the meantime, the AQMD has used more than $108 million in Carl Moyer Program funds to cover diesel engine upgrades for construction equipment, fork-lifts, marine vessels, irrigation pumps and locomotives.
Representatives with the construction industry have raised concerns about the cost of replacing or retrofitting equipment.
“Cost has always been an issue,” said Jack Kyser, chief economist for the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp. “Firms will probably try to pass this on somewhere. The bottom line is, if we want cleaner air, it’s something we’ll have to pay for... It’s worth it.”
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on December 6, 2006. Read the original PDF.