For Release: Friday, October 31, 2008
State and City Launch Aggressive Enforcement Action Targeting Truck/bus Pollution in Urban Neighborhoods
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Pete Grannis announced today that DEC, in cooperation with the New York City Department of Environmental Protection (NYCDEP), has adopted a long-term enforcement strategy to cut down on the health impacts associated with smoke-spewing and idling diesel trucks and buses throughout the city, especially in communities that have been disproportionately impacted by pollution.
Under the plan, DEC will carry out regular but unannounced enforcement actions in hot spots where heavy truck traffic enters or exits a neighborhood, as well as areas where diesel trucks tend to congregate. At those hot spots, DEC will implement pullover operations that target trucks churning out plumes of visible exhaust - in violation of state air regulations. Each time a "smoking" truck enforcement action is set up, DEC and the NYCDEP also will patrol the area for trucks and buses idling excessively.
In addition to implementing this plan in New York City, DEC plans to take similar enforcement actions in environmental justice neighborhoods elsewhere in the state.
"We owe it to ourselves and our children to make our cities livable. That means, at a minimum, the air we breathe should not make us sick," Commissioner Grannis said. "Emissions from smoking and idling trucks and buses are a problem -- especially in communities that have been disproportionately impacted by pollution. DEC is committed to dealing with this issue. We intend to take aggressive enforcement actions wherever we find hot spots of smoking and idling trucks and buses."
"PlaNYC, Mayor Michael Bloomberg's long-term sustainability plan, aims to give New York City the cleanest air of any city in America by reducing the harmful pollutants that decrease lung function and aggravate asthma and reducing emissions from vehicles is an important strategy of this plan," said NYCDEP Acting Commissioner Steven Lawitts. "There's little, if any, doubt that improving our air quality will help prevent asthma attacks in New York City's most affected communities. That's why we are committed to working with our state partners in enforcing emissions standards. Our goal is to identify and target hot spots where vehicles and diesel trucks tend to idle and congregate. So, we need New Yorkers to call 311 and help us identify these locations where enforcement resources can be efficiently allocated. Together with local agencies, advocacy groups and the public, we will continue to reduce air pollution and to protect our children and our communities."
The initiative comes as a result of a successful city-state crackdown on truck and boiler pollution last year in East Harlem, a neighborhood with elevated asthma rates and heavy truck traffic. DEC law-enforcement officers pulled over and inspected 361 diesel trucks and issued 163 tickets for various violations of state air and safety regulations. The officers also issued 10 tickets for excessive idling. New York City DEP issued 33 tickets for idling trucks and 11 tickets for boilers that violated city codes.
Based on that operation, DEC estimates that close to 20 percent of the trucks traveling the area are out of compliance with state air regulations. With transportation studies showing there are approximately 10,000 truck trips daily through this corridor, that means that there could be nearly 2,000 trucks emitting illegal levels of pollutants every work day in East Harlem.
Today, to exemplify the new plan, DEC operated a pullover enforcement on First Avenue near the on-ramp of the Willis Avenue Bridge, and on Second Avenue near the off-ramp of the Third Avenue Bridge, areas that capture much of the truck traffic that travels up and down the entire east side of Manhattan. At the same time, NYCDEP inspectors patrolled the neighborhood, issuing tickets for illegal idling.
In this initiative, DEC and NYCDEP were joined by WE ACT for Environmental Justice, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer's Go Green East Harlem Initiative. The parties are working together to develop an outreach program to educate the trucking industry and neighborhoods across the city about the laws and serious consequences of polluting trucks. A key feature of the program will involve empowering communities to identify idling hot spots in their neighborhoods. In addition, the Institute for Transportation Systems of the City University of New York, with Director
Neville A. Parker, is working with the groups to use the data generated by these enforcement actions in a computer model for estimating the local impacts of various sources of air pollution in East Harlem and possibly other parts of the city.
"Freight and commercial transportation are critical components to keeping New York City's economy moving forward, especially during these tough times," said Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn. "With the significant rise in truck traffic passing though our City over the last 10 years, we must have a forward-thinking plan in place to reduce the harmful pollutants that trucks and buses emit out into our communities. Working together to find effective solutions to reduce smoking and idling vehicles in our most at-risk neighborhoods, our air will be cleaner, New Yorkers will be healthier and our economy will continue to motor on."
"New York City has some of the highest asthma rates in the nation, particularly in communities affected by pollution," said Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer. "Residents and community leaders have demonstrated their ongoing commitment to ending the harmful environmental conditions that have plagued their neighborhoods for decades. Today's announcement proves that the state and city share this goal. Through increased, sustained enforcement of regulations against smoking and idling trucks we take a significant step forward in the fight against asthma."
"This is government at its best: environmental enforcement measures that will lead to comprehensive improvements in public health," said State Senator José M. Serrano, whose district includes the site of today's enforcement action and who is a member of the Senate Environmental Conservation Committee. "I saw this initiative first-hand when it came to my district in East Harlem, and I am thrilled to see Commissioner Grannis expand it across the city."
"Aggressive enforcement is an important tool that can reduce asthma rates, improve air quality in East Harlem, and cut health-related hospitalization costs," said Peggy Shepard, Executive Director of WE ACT For Environmental Justice. "Though environmental enforcement has been lacking in lower-income communities, we appreciate that the state is maintaining this important initiative."
"We can solve New York City's diesel pollution problem," said Richard Kassel, NRDC Senior Attorney. "Enforcing the anti-pollution laws already on the books is a smart way to clean up our air and help children with asthma breathe easier."
