Fight for Clean Air and Good Jobs Moves to the Courts and to Congress

The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and Sierra Club, both key members of a the LAANE-led Coalition for Clean and Safe Ports, filed suit on January 4 against the Long Beach Harbor Commission over what they describe as a backroom agreement between the agency and the American Trucking Associations (ATA) that could illegally reverse efforts to improve air quality in communities surrounding the Port of Long Beach.

“This deal puts the wolf in charge of the henhouse – with a likely result of dirtier air for local communities. Industry cannot be allowed to dictate clean air efforts and rollback the Port’s clean air advancements,” said David Pettit, director of NRDC’s Southern California Clean Air Program.

The new agreement, entered into on October 19, gives the ATA authority to oversee future updates to the clean trucks program at the Port of Long Beach even if the Port is acting to protect public health and safety. The arrangement requires the Port of Long Beach to receive ATA’s approval before making changes to key portions of the clean trucks program or risk the ATA filing a lawsuit.

Meanwhile, two dozen California members of the U.S. House of Representatives have joined port officials and mayors from many major port cities in support of a revision to an archaic law prohibiting local regulation of the trucking industry that is being used to undermine efforts to fix a system that leaves truck drivers in poverty and unable to maintain their vehicles.

Relying on the federal law, the trucking industry has succeeded in blocking key provisions of the groundbreaking Los Angeles Clean Truck Program and forced drivers into exploitative and onerous lease agreements for emissions-compliant trucks, further driving down take-home pay in an already-weak economy.

In a letter last November to the chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure committee, the lawmakers supporting local regulation indicated their desire to protect the Port of Los Angeles’ Clean Truck Program and permit officials in Oakland, LA and around the country to enact similar operational requirements for port property to meet federal and state clean-air standards and improve safety, security and congestion.

In the letter to Rep. James Oberstar the lawmakers wrote: “As you consider transportation policies during this Congress, we urge you to allow California ports to implement and enforce critical truck management programs.”

Noting that 50 percent of imports pass through California’s ports, creating particularly acute challenges for trucking.  The condition of the trucks earned these trade hubs a notorious reputation as the place “where old trucks go to die.”  The Congressional leaders urged an amendment to the outdated Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act (FAAAA), enacted to “deregulate” the trucking industry.

"This is a historic fight to clean up the nation's ports and a historic partnership of environmentalists, workers and community members.  Whether we are in City Hall, at the Harbor Commission, or in Congress, our determination to create good jobs and a healthy environment remains unchanged," said Patricia Castellanos, LAANE's Deputy Director and chair of the Coalition for Clean and Safe Ports.