Oakland Extends Deadline on Port's Emissions Standard

Oakland officials have extended the deadline for compliance with California's port truck rule aimed at reducing diesel emissions in and around port communities

, according to published reports.

At a meeting Saturday, Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums, along with officials from local agencies including the California Air Resources Board, Bay Area Air Quality Management District and the Port of Oakland, made the decision to give truck drivers an additional two weeks to meet the new standard at the Port of Oakland, a regulation originally set for Jan. 1, reports the Contra Costa Times.

The move follows an announcement by the state to provide another $11 million in funding to partly pay for more than 1,200 retrofits and more than 100 new trucks serving the port.

Truckers who made timely application for retrofit funding to the Bay Area Air Quality Management District but were denied when the money ran out, and who will be unable to enter the port when the new rule goes into effect, may be eligible for the grants. Truck drivers have until Jan. 15 to fill out the paperwork to apply for the funding, according to the Contra Costa Times. Those that are approved and receive a purchase request for a retrofit will be able to operate their old trucks at ports and rail yards until April 30.

The additional Proposition 1B funding will provide $5,000 per truck for 1,216 additional trucks to install particulate matter filters on their rigs, and provide $50,000 for owners of 103 old trucks to purchase newer models.

The average cost of a DPF is $16,000, with the devices removing 85 percent of the diesel emissions from older trucks.

With this announcement, state, local and federal air agencies and ports now have provided $33 million in funding to help clean up trucks at the Port of Oakland.

CARB passed the port truck rule in December 2007, which requires truck owners operating in and out of ports and intermodal rail yards to retrofit and replace their trucks over the next several years. CARB estimates that the regulation will prevent 580 premature deaths over the next five years.