The California Air Resources Board Oct. 21 issued a reminder to owners of heavy diesel trucks that they need to act now to comply with California’s Truck and Bus regulation, which has its first diesel filter deadline in January 2012.
“Fleet owners need to plan now to equip their trucks with diesel particulate filters in order to be ready in January,” said Erik White, assistant chief of Mobile Sources, noting the process of ordering and installing equipment can take a few months. “We continue to make tools available to help truckers better understand the regulation, as well as figure out which options make the most sense for their businesses. There are also several options available for funding.”
The regulation provides owners of heavier trucks and buses (those with a gross vehicle weight rating greater than 26,000 pounds) with two options to reduce diesel emissions. They can:
- Follow a staggered implementation schedule that requires 1996-1999 model engines be retrofit with a DPF by Jan. 1, 2012; or
- Use a flexible phase-in option that requires any 30 percent of vehicles in the fleet to have a DPF. This option requires fleet owners to report information about all their heavier vehicles to CARB by Jan. 31, 2012. Fleets that report also can take advantage of credits and special provisions.
Owners of small fleets – which CARB defines as one to three trucks with a GVWR greater than 14,000 pounds – can postpone the January 2012 compliance requirement for their heavier trucks until 2014, but must report their fleet information to CARB by Jan. 31, 2012, to receive the extension. Lighter diesel trucks with a GVWR of 14,001 to 26,000 pounds have no compliance requirements until 2015.
Business owners may find funding opportunities to upgrade their fleets through either the Carl Moyer Program, which offers incentive grants for buying cleaner-than-required engines yielding early or extra emissions reductions, or by using Proposition 1B funds, which are available under the Goods Movement Emissions Reduction Program. Truck owners seeking more information on compliance assistance and funding opportunities can call (866) 634-3735.
