To reduce air pollution
Los Angeles Port Truck Air Rules Win Judge's Approval
Plans by the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, California, to reduce air pollution from trucks are in the public interest and trump competition concerns, a federal judge said, rejecting a Federal Maritime Commission challenge.
District Judge Richard Leon in Washington denied a request for a preliminary injunction against the new rules, saying the agency failed to prove that the program will reduce competition or cause irreparable economic harm.
The ports, which handle about 40 percent of U.S. container traffic, are seeking to reduce air pollution by 80 percent by requiring older trucks be replaced with newer ones. The American Trucking Associations last month won an appeals court ruling that portions of the plan are preempted by federal law.
"Without these provisions, the number of clean trucks currently serving the ports will decrease and significantly fewer clean trucks will enter into service, thus reducing the environmental and health benefits gained to date and expected to be gained the future," Leon said in his ruling, issued late yesterday.
The ATA says the rules bar more than 1,000 licensed motor carriers from entering the ports. Eric Reller, a spokesman for the industry group, did not immediately return a telephone call.
Arley Baker, a spokesman for the Port of Los Angeles, didn’t immediately return a call.
The case is Federal Maritime Commission v. Cit of Los Angeles, 08-1895, U.S. District Court, District of Columbia (Washington).
(Published by Bloomberg - April 16, 2009)