California Construction Trucking Association (CCTA)

April is an anniversary month for me. Five years ago I attended my first CARB meeting at the beautiful green CalEPA/CARB Building in Sacramento and learned of the On and Off Road Diesel Engine Rules, the dangers of Particulate Matter (PM), and the fact that I had unknowingly been (when I drove my diesel powered dump truck for 15 years) causing asthma and killing our children for all those years. Back then, I believed most things like this I was told, and frankly in early 2006 things were good for most of us, so why would anyone question such environmental rapture? Back then there was plenty of work, rates were high, credit was not an issue and many of us had small homes that were worth hundreds of thousands of dollars above what we had originally paid for them.

Funny, I even remember that CARB back then happily provided their staff to attend our meetings, discussing the proposed rules and showing us all how to apply for incentive funding to buy Diesel Particulate Filters (DPF’s), new engines and even new trucks. We were told or led to believe that these new engines, retrofits and new trucks would help clean the air and we could all sleep better at night knowing we were doing our part to save “the children” and the planet.

Unfortunately, nothing good lasts forever. In 2007, the housing CDO and CDS backed financing boom imploded, banks failed, credit tightened, home values dropped like a rock and unemployment skyrocketed. It’s taken a while, and as expected many lives began to crumble soon after.  The bubble burst beginning with housing, as developers walked away from projects and it has all gone down-hill since then.

I recently read in a CBIA report called The State of Housing in California that in 2005, there were 209,000 single family homes built here. By 2009, the number dropped to 36,000. Do the math, that’s an 83% drop. While the report exuded positive growth and even said that they project housing growth to increase to 157,500 units by 2015, I remain a little skeptical.

If there was ever a “Perfect Storm” we have lived it – and at least in the construction industry. In fact, we continue to live in it day to day.

Despite the financial hardships we have been facing, a large number of our members tried to relay these economic realities to the members of the CARB Board at each meeting. To no avail, the Board ignored these warnings and voted unanimously in December 2008 to proceed with the On-Road Rule Truck and Bus Regulation.

I also recall that within one week of this CARB Board Meeting and vote, CDTOA learned of Professor Enstrom, the Tran fraud, the Scientific Review Panel fraud and mismanagement, and suddenly I became skeptical about environmental messaging. I thought to myself, “What if none of what we had been told by CARB, EPA, the American Lobbyist, I mean Lung Assoc. (ALA) and those within the UC school systems public health schools was true?”

If there was ever a “David and Goliath Battle” we were in it up to our necks challenging the established political scientific community here and around this country. 

As we continued to question the science and process behind all of this, our resources also became scarce. The money trees shriveled up and died, no-credit, low credit scores, homes in foreclosure, our equipment was worth pennies on the dollar, high fuel prices, little or no work, low-pay or no-pay, you name it – times are hard. Then we learned that not only had many of us been living on credit that we could not repay, even our Golden state was debt ridden. Every day we learn of more drastic cuts to our supposedly vital services, schools, fire, police and prisons. Yet, there is no discussion of government cuts or reform, only more taxes.

Now we are being asked to vote to continue the two year “temporary” tax increase for another five years for our $90,000 a year teachers and $200,000 plus pay for fireman, lifeguards, prison guards and police, while many in the private sector who pay tax for these public sector workers cannot even buy groceries.

As I was writing this report I received another call from a long time member whose words were, “I am getting out, I was dead and didn’t even know it.” This is the world in which I now live in today. We are all learning to count pennies, not dollars these days.

Grants for Lawn Mowers – What?

Walking into the CARB meeting on April 29, I was prepared to address the issue of the State Implementation Plan (SIP) which may reduce PM2.5 standards even more than they are today. Incidentally, if we let this happen it likely means that the new 2010 engines may not be clean enough after 2016. I’m serious about this.
Sorry, back to the CARB meeting.

I had made notes and was determined to stick to the subject at hand. The auditorium was filled with Air Board members from different districts within the state, smiles and handshakes came from all around. The state of environmental euphoria was almost cultish.

Before the agenda items on the SIP, came the new proposal for Carl Moyer Funding for subsidizing new, green lawnmowers and hedge trimmers. Yes, you read it right, if you are going to weed-whack your lawn, CARB wants it done in an environmentally friendly way, and the state will help pay for it with our tax and bond money.
This was the third time in as many years that I felt my blood pressure begin to rise while attending one of these meetings. I have honestly had visions of letting out a scream, having a straightjacket placed on me and being taken to a mental hospital for observation. I have certainly been aware that we do not see eye to eye with CARB on numerous issue’s, what I realized here was that we are not only living in different worlds, we are living on different planets. How anyone with a shred of decency could propose such an obnoxious program when millions in our state are suffering, is beyond comprehension.

Needless to say, my SIP comments went right out the door as I stated to the Board that it was evident to me that they are completely out of touch with the real world, my world and your world.

Here is some background information on the Carl Moyer Program and the proposal which came before the Board on April 28 to subsidize green lawn mowers and hedge trimmers.

In its first 12 years, the Carl Moyer Program provided over $680 million in State and local funds to clean-up approximately 24,000 engines (that’s $28,333/engine). This reduced approximately 100,000 tons of oxides of nitrogen and 6,000 tons of toxic diesel particulate matter (that’s $68/lb or $136,000/ton) throughout California. For fiscal year 2010/2011, approximately $69 million of State funding is available through the Carl Moyer Program, with an additional $50 million of local funds that can be spent on similar projects.

California Health and Safety Code section 44287 authorizes ARB to revise the Carl Moyer Program Guidelines when necessary to improve the ability of the program to achieve its goals. This section of the Health and Safety Code also instructs ARB to work with California’s air pollution control and air quality management districts (air districts), provide a 45 day public comment period, and hold at least one public meeting to consider public comments prior to adopting any revisions to the Guidelines. Increased regulatory activity and changes in the economy have had a noticeable impact on the Carl Moyer Program. For example, small fleet participation has declined substantially due to the declining availability of obtaining the credit necessary to help offset the incremental costs required by the Carl Moyer Program.

Let me translate the above paragraphs, we have spent almost three-quarters of a billion dollars to replace 24,000 older dirty-diesel, soot spewing, child killing, asthma causing engines – aren’t we good? However, we have done such a terrific job of eliminating jobs in California that the few truckers left standing no longer need to apply for our funds due to the fact that they have no credit lines available, nor the ability to repay the loans.

Ironically the biggest beneficiaries of all this are the heavy-duty diesel engine manufacturers like – Cummins, Detroit Diesel, Paccar and Navistar. Is there any wonder why we never see them standing up for diesel and diesel engines – their own investments? Because they have everything to gain and the poor trucker gets screwed and has to pay for it all. Something is very wrong with this in my opinion. How are the engine manufacturers exempt from any financial liabilities here, I just don’t get it – because they have better lobbyist!

Next on the CARB meeting agenda was the proposal for subsidies to replace lawn and garden equipment. This was taken directly from the agenda.   

The second new source category staff is proposing to add would provide incentives to owners to replace their older, gasoline fueled lawn and garden equipment with newer, zero-emission electric equipment. Adding this source category will allow air districts the ability to either enhance existing replacement programs or develop new replacement programs. Staff is proposing that the category be initially limited to residential lawn mowers. As electric lawn and garden technology improves in the future, staff will consider the feasibility of adding other types of equipment for replacement.

Again the translation was, our Air District employees are running out of projects, thanks for allowing them to develop new programs it justifies their existence. Furthermore, we have a whole crap-load of your taxes and bond debt money, we need to get rid of it all and new, green lawnmowers make us feel like we are doing something wonderful for the environment.

You see my friends, this is how it works in these green government agencies.

Now, I can solve even more of our states problems if they would just give me a chance.

For instance, recently the Sacramento Bee ran a story on a U.C. Davis Professor, Dr. Adela de la Torre who is being given a $4.8 million dollar grant to study childhood obesity in the Central Valley. I can clean the air and cure obesity in one whack, and I will only charge you $75 bucks. As one who has battled weight for most of my adult life, I know what causes it. You can’t take in more calories than you burn, simple enough. Now, if we really want to do the right thing for our planet

I propose we eliminate ALL powered lawnmowers – gas, electric and battery powered. After all, electric lawnmowers require electricity, as do the new green mowers with batteries, they must be recharged. I suggest we all return to the old-fashioned human-powered push reel type lawnmowers. Dr. Google tells me that these mowers will burn off approximately 323 calories an hour for a person weighing 130 pounds, and the calories burned increases dramatically for every 10 pounds of weight. I would send that thick teenager (overweight and fat are politically incorrect terms) out at dawn to mow lawns and tell him not to return until nightfall. Two problems solved – lawnmower pollution and childhood obesity. Next?

Assemblyman Donnelly Legislation – Good Intentions to Kill the Fear Mongers

I would also like to personally thank Assemblyman Tim Donnelly for authoring Assembly Bill 1332 to abolish CARB.  This definitely took some guts, which he seems to have plenty of. I was honored to be able to testify in support of this bill on April 25, along with CDTOA member Skip Brown and CIOMA member Tim Ward.  Needless to say, the vote went straight down party lines, with the Republicans voting for and the Democrats voting against. Still, it was heartwarming to see the number of people who traveled great distances to voice their support, including members Dick Stevenson and Matt Griffin. In addition, even a teacher showed up and asked why in these tough budget times this agency is being given so much money. Mr. Teacher, I can tell you where some of it is going, for lawnmowers.

Still breathless:
Asthma rates rising even as smoking and air pollution declines to record level

According to the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), Asthma rates in the U.S. have increased over the past ten years. However, as Ileana Arias, principal deputy director of the CDC says, no one quite knows why: the increase of 4.3 million Americans with asthma since 2001 comes even as air quality has dramatically improved and smoking rates have decreased. And since researchers have adopted different means of measuring asthma incidence in the population, a direct comparison to rates in the 1990s isn’t possible. The positive note in the CDC’s report, though, is that the rate of death from asthma has declined.

In his commentary on this CDC report, Paul Garbe, chief of that agencies air pollution and respiratory health branch, observed that one of the key means of treating asthma — a written action plan for patients — is too often neglected by physicians. Such plans effectively teach patients how to manage their symptoms, including how to avoid triggers, properly take medication and (notes the American Council on Science and Health, Dr. Gilbert Ross) monitor their air flow with a peak flow meter.

ACSH’s Dr. Josh Bloom comments that, although the increase in incidence is not understood, the decrease in deaths is almost certainly due to improved therapies. “Advair, one of the top selling drugs in the world, was introduced in the U.S. in 1998. It, and similar products, has revolutionized the treatment of asthma. The total number of asthma-related deaths, as well as death rates, have fallen sharply since then and continue to do so.”

We direct any readers who’d like to know more about risk factors, triggers and treatments for asthma to the 2008 report by Columbia University pulmonologist Dr. Emily DiMango, Asthma: Causes, Diagnosis and Treatment.  

So, who is wondering how the America Lung Assoc., CARB and the EPA are going to spin this one – cleaner air creates higher asthma.... hmmmm? With another BS report that they paid for, and it just happened to come out in early May called “The Road to Clean Air”. Now who is shocked with this development? You see, the air will never be clean enough because if it was, they would all be out of the business of fear mongering to sustain their lifestyles – and protect the children!

I will leave you with these comments or quotes from this report that I found ridiculous, “90 percent of us live in areas (in California) with unhealthy air.” Who actually believes this – really – 90% of us? And you’ll really love this one, “Health benefits include a 65-75 percent drop in premature deaths (all 350 of them); 8,440 fewer asthma attacks annually (which we now know is false, they will increase as the air improves – see above); 190,000 fewer respiratory symptoms avoided (what is a respiratory symptom); more than 5,000 fewer cases of bronchitis; and as much as $8.1 billion in health and societal related costs avoided.” But at what price we should all be asking?

This is all according to the American Lung Association, which I believe is probably the most evil, disingenuous (for-profit) non-profit organization I have ever seen – period.  

  A Total Denier - Betty Plowman
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