Philadelphia Diesel Difference Working Group Minutes

October 16, 2006

The Philadelphia Diesel Difference - Working Group Meeting
Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission (DVRPC)
190 North Independence Mall West,
8th Floor,
Philadelphia, PA 19106


IN ATTENDANCE:
Jim Black, Clean Air Council
Eric Cheung, Clean Air Council
Fred Cummings, City of Philadelphia, Division of Aviation
Morris Fine, City of Philadelphia, Air Management Services
John Hadalski, City of Philadelphia, Water Department
Darlene Heep, City of Philadelphia, Law Department
Sea Greene, DVRPC
Paula Krall, EPA Region 3
Jack LeBeau, EHRF
Lisa MaGee, Philadelphia Regional Port Authority
Urszula Miezio, Johnson Matthey, Inc.
Kelly Sheckler, EPA Region 3
Alison Tracy, City of Philadelphia, Air Management Services

MINUTES TAKEN BY:
Alison Tracy

INTRODUCTIONS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Morris welcomed the group and made note of two grants that the city has been working on. First, the City's Fleet has applied for AFIG funds for the incremental cost of biodiesel. Fleet Management has used some biodiesel in the past and had good experience with it. In its application, Fleet also has asked for funds to cover the cost of installing a new pump. Under this grant, Fleet hopes to use 500,000 gallons of fuel each year for two years.

Second, Air Management Services has submitted a proposal to the Mid-Atlantic Diesel Collaborative (MDC) that would fund Diesel Oxidation Catalysts for 77 fire trucks. The grant proposal asks for $100,000 and would be matched by $50,000 from the City. The Clean Air Council also submitted a proposal for continued retrofits of offroad equipment at Packer and Tioga Terminals. It should be noted that MDC received 16 proposals totaling well over $1 million, and the maximum amount available for the grant is $300,000. An advisory group will be evaluating the proposals.

PHILADELPHIA DIESEL DIFFERENCE ACTIVITIES UPDATE:
Eric updated the group on next steps in obtaining fleet commitments. We will be focusing on construction firms and municipal fire departments and will be sending letters in an effort to schedule meetings and bring more fleets on board. Eric will be preparing a full grant proposal for the upcoming Diesel Collaborative grant, as there is no guarantee that proposals will be selected and it may be desirable to submit a separate proposal regardless. CAC estimates that another 60-80 retrofits can be done with the funds requested.

The group discussed the feasibility of submitting one grant two ways: once under MARAMA's package and once separately. Kelly said there is no prohibition from doing so, but obviously the project will only be funded once. EPA and MARAMA will try to help those not selected in locating other funding.

John H. suggested that Eric speak to the National Fire Protection Association regarding fire trucks. He also brought up the idea of contacting City departments regarding contract language in mandating retrofits. Darlene Heep said she would look into this and would consult with City staff that review RFPs to make sure there are no impediments. Urszula said there are many different ways to include retrofits in bid specifications, and it is important to choose a strategy that does not disadvantage any smaller firms that may be bidding on contracts. Darlene noted that there are some upcoming projects such as the Schuylkill bridges repair project that are very large and will be bid upon by only the largest firms operating in Philadelphia. Kelly will pass around EPA's advice on contract language for construction. John suggested looking into whether the Board of Highway Supervisors would like to consider this issue.

The groups discussed a statewide bill that, if passed, would include a provision funding tax credits for retrofits. The legislation is designed to discourage fleets from buying 2006 vehicles to avoid having to purchase cleaner but more expensive 2007 vehicles. Eric will include some information about the bill on the website.

The Clean Air Board of Central Pennsylvania is campaigning for a statewide idling law. AMS submitted a testimonial stating that the statute works well in Philadelphia. The document stopped short of actually advocating a statewide rule. According to Arleen Shulman, there is some concern at the State level about how that would be enforced. Morris said that local municipalities would be charged with enforcement of a State provision, except Philadelphia and Allegheny County, who have their own authority over air pollution issues and would enforce local statutes. Morris noted that PDD is limited in its ability to offer support letters. He suggested discussing this issue at a future meeting.

COMMITTEE UPDATES:
The Ports Task Force has selected a vendor, Cummins, to retrofit 83 vehicles at Packer and Tioga Terminals. The order will be placed soon and their goal is to complete the retrofits by January. Most of the retrofits will be installed on yard jockeys, which move containers after they are offloaded by cranes from ships. Lisa suggested that this may be problematic for Tioga, who is just starting its busy season. Retrofits there may need to wait until May. There will be no Task Force meeting in November. The Task Force website is now online, and the three sector reports-air, water and land/brownfields-are still underway. The air and water reports are circulating with EPA and the land/brownfields report is close to completion.

GRANTS UPDATE:
Again, the $300,000 Mid-Atlantic Diesel Collaborative grant will be open until October 31st.

MONTHLY PRESENTATION:
Eric gave a presentation on a group that Clean Air Council has been working with in Carlisle Pennsylvania that is similar to PDD. He distributed a draft of the executive summary of their report, which addresses truck traffic through the Carlisle area that results from drivers endeavoring to avoid tolls from the Turnpike by taking local roads to and from Highway 81. The area has become a haven for trucking-related industries such as rest stops. This initiative marks the first time Clean Air Council has received funds from a private foundation, the Carlisle Health and Wellness Foundation. Interestingly, the report found that much of the area's pollution comes from point sources rather than mobile sources. However, this does not account for the exposure of homes in close proximity to roads with heavy volumes of truck traffic. Much of the pollution unfortunately comes from through traffic that does not stop in Carlisle. However, the group will attempt to initiate anti-idling projects such as truck stop electrification, and will work to make clean fuels available to help reduce local truck emissions. The group would also like to involve EPA and the Tri-County Planning Commission. Morris noted that DEP is currently compiling SIPs for nonattainment regions, and this group could be active in providing input to the SIP process. Jack LeBeau suggested charging a small amount at truck stops to fund clean diesel programs. Urszula suggested learning more about Cascade Sierra Solutions, an envirofunding company.

Finally, Eric reported that CAC filed suit against DEP, contending that they had not done enough to implement the Clean Vehicles program. However, the judge ruled that the State did not have a specific duty to act as the legislation is written. Although the ruling was not in CAC's favor, the suit did put pressure on DEP to act more quickly.

NEXT MEETING AND LOCATION:
The next meeting will be held November 20, 2006 at DVRPC.