Emissions:
*States sue EPA over ozone pollution standards -- New York, California, and 12 other states have sued the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, claiming it violated the Clean Air Act by not toughening ozone pollution standards enough in March, the New York attorney general said on Wednesday. Reuters 5/28/08
CARB Proposes New Air Quality Regulations -- The California Air Resources Board (CARB) is circulating a draft regulation that would require heavy duty tractors and 53-foot box-type trailers to be equipped with devices that would reduce drag and rolling resistance in an effort to improve efficiency and reduce greenhousegas emissions. Material Handling Management 5/28/08
Ports and water:
*East Bay Regional Park District bans out-of-state boats -- The East Bay Regional Park District has banned out-of-state boats from its recreational lakes in the latest crackdown by a local agency to prevent two non-native mussels from infecting new waters in California. Park managers are trying to stop the spread of quagga and zebra mussels, which can stow away in boats from infested lakes or rivers and hitchhike rides to new waters. SJ Mercury 5/28/08
Alcohol use is No. 1 contributing factor in boating fatalities -- According to the most recent U.S. Coast Guard statistics, alcohol use is ranked No. 1 as a contributing factor in fatal boating accidents in the United States. There were 133 alcohol use-related boating fatalities in 2006 (the latest statistics available). In California in 2007, the California Department of Boating and Waterways reported 1,800 alcohol-related boating accidents. Lakeco News 5/24/08
*Long Beach port's Middle Harbor plan aimed at clearing region's air -- Vessels would have to be able to plug into the electrical grid and turn off their auxiliary diesel engines, and yard equipment would have to operate on the cleanest energy. The reason: As planned, Middle Harbor would be permitted to emit no more than half of current pollution levels. The 10-year, $750-million project would combine two terminals that are too old, inefficient and dirty to meet the port's goals for pollution reduction and greater productivity. LA Times 5/27/08
Infrastructure:
Bay Bridge coming together slowly but surely -- From their through-the-windshield vantage point on the upper deck of the Bay Bridge, morning commuters can spy a structure being built to their left as they near Yerba Buena Island. During the next few months, they'll see another structure rising on their right. Still, both will play an important role in the next four to five years of construction on the new Bay Bridge. And they're manifestations of why construction of the $1.04 billion single-tower suspension span is so costly, so complex and will take so long to complete. SF Chronicle 5/28/08
“To toll or not to toll”: State transport leaders singing the highway funding blues -- State transportation budgets are being broken around the country by a decreased level of federal funding at a time when transport and logistics infrastructure needs are growing at an alarming rate. Up until about 20 years ago, the primary means of funding transport projects in the Golden State was through the tradition “80-20” federal-state funding arrangements. But now, McKim says, the federal government is paying only about 15 percent of California’s share of highway funding. In addition, revenue from state gasoline taxes fell 5 percent in the past year as drivers revolt from $4-a-gallon gasoline. Logistics Management 5/27/08
Cement industry trying to meet demand while curbing emissions -- Now, the cement industry has the full attention of one of 11 Climate Action Team subgroups, comprised of industry representatives, state agencies such as the Air Resources Board and environmentalists, and they want to know what cement industries will be doing to support California clean air initiatives. In an apparent effort to reduce costs, plants such as Hanson are looking at different fuel sources - some of them not so new. SJ Mercury 5/28/08
High-speed rail:
High-speed rail solution for chronic sky troubles – An editorial by Bruce Reed, president of the Democratic Leadership Council and Paul Weinstein, chief operating officer of the Progressive Policy Institute and a visiting fellow at Johns Hopkins: That's why the next president and the new Congress should commit to building five new high-speed rail corridors in the next 10 years. Roads and airports have direct sources of financing - namely, taxes on gasoline and ticket purchases. If high-speed rail is going to become a reality, it will need a similarly robust stream of income. That's why policymakers should establish a trust fund that would finance construction and maintenance. Newsday 5/28/08
Transportation:
Parking officers prepare to deal with rising tide of anger -- With assault cases against San Francisco’s parking control officers in double digits, The City is putting its ticket-dispensing employees through a new conflict-resolution program to help them defuse the angry reactions of unruly citizens. Assault cases against parking control officers, who are overseen by Muni, rose from 17 in 2005 to 28 in 2006. Examiner 5/28/08
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