'Carb Diesel' Initiatives Hit Walls In Arizona, Texas

Diesel Fuel News, March 5, 2001 by Jack Peckham

Arizona's legislature has decided to drop further action on a proposal to require California Air Resources Board (CARB) diesel fuel as part of a "Brown Cloud Initiative" package (see Diesel Fuel News 12/25/2000, p7).

Consideration of the controversial initiative (which split the oil industry) will be put off until next year, Arizona House Majority Leader Carolyn Allen said. Allen, who sponsored the CARB diesel bill, said she was dropping it this year because of state budget issues that take higher priority.

However, other "Brown Cloud" initiatives -- diesel emissions retrofit programs along with ultra-low-sulfur diesel (ULSD) fuel -- have forward momentum, despite the setback to CARD diesel. An Arizona House panel approved a measure backing $10/year truck registration fee that would create a fund for diesel retrofits.

Separately, a flurry of lawsuits are hitting Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission's (TNRCC) mandates to clean up emissions, including CARB diesel.

Texas Motor Transportation Association (TMTA) claims in its lawsuit that TNRCC's CARB diesel mandate in 2002 would set a "dangerous and potentially costly precedent that could have a nationwide impact," since other states are also mulling CARB diesel or cleaner diesel fuel schemes.

"We fully support a national diesel fuel standard to help clean the air," TMTA President Bill Webb said, rather than "boutique" fuels that tend to be thin in supply and subject to sharp price spikes, as in California. CARB diesel often has a price premium of 12 to 42 cents/gallon more than diesel on the Gulf Coast, home to many Texas refineries, Webb said.

Airline, Construction Challenges

In other lawsuits against TNRCC, Delta Airlines sued over plans to slash airport emissions from diesel and gasoline ground support equipment (GSE) by forcing costly electric conversions.

However, American Airlines, Southwest Airlines and Continental signed agreements to cut GSE emissions at Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) and in Houston.

American announced last month that it would spend some $400 million over 10 years on electric GSE at many airports around the U.S. In Dallas, DFW airport is paying for electric recharging stations.

Perhaps mindful of offending the airlines that pay the airport's bills, airport managers claim that the clouds of smoke, sulfate particles and nitrogen oxides from thousands of giant jet aircraft at heavily-congested airports like DFW only account for 40% of local airport emissions, while the comparatively tiny tractor-tugs, trucks, buses and other GSE at airports are claimed to account for 45%.

Seeing nothing that can be done immediately about jet aircraft emissions, the airport instead is converting its police cars and buses to alternative fuels such as compressed natural gas (CNG), propane and hybrid gasoline-electric, although two ambulances will use an unspecified "clean-burning diesel fuel."

Separately, the "Business Coalition for Clean Air," including several major Houston-area refiners, hopes to amend TNRCC's new ban on early-hours diesel construction equipment, as well as the 90% cut in refinery and other stationary source emissions.

Meantime, Texas state legislators are mulling possible measures to help businesses pay for upgrades or replacement of diesel equipment, rather than imposing mandates without any incentives.

U.S. EPA's public comment period on the TNRCC plan as it affects the Dallas/Forth Worth region ends on March 19.

Equipment Manufacturers Institute (EMI), which represents makers of the construction equipment affected by the early-hours restriction, points out that EPA might require changes to TNRCC's Dallas-Ft. Worth plan. For example, retrofitting diesel equipment with urea-SCR or other measures for NOx control could give Texas extra emissions credits.

While EPA earlier said it would put a 3% limit on "voluntary" retrofit programs (see Diesel Fuel News Special Report, 4/24/2000), Texas could earn more credits with certain "economic incentive" plans that include stricter enforcement schemes (see related story, p9).