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Oct. 7, 2005
The South Coast Air Quality Management District today re-elected William
A. Burke, Ed.D., to a fourth term as chairman of the agency’s Governing
Board. The Board also re-elected Riverside County Supervisor S. Roy Wilson
as vice-chair.
Both will serve two-year leadership terms beginning on Jan. 15, 2006.
Earlier this month, Burke was re-appointed to a four-year term on the
AQMD Board by Speaker of the Assembly Fabian Nuñez. Burke, one of the
longest-tenured members and chairmen of the AQMD Board, was first appointed
to the post in September 1993 by then-Speaker of the Assembly Willie Brown
Jr.
During his tenure as chair, Burke has introduced many landmark AQMD
programs, including AQMD’s Environmental Justice program.
Riverside County Supervisor S. Roy Wilson has served on the AQMD
Governing Board since 1988 and as vice-chair since January 2003.
AQMD’s Governing Board today also adopted a major rule requiring
railroads to assess the cancer risk from their operations.
“This new rule will take the first step in requiring public notification
of health risks from a large, under-regulated source – railroads,” said
Barry Wallerstein, AQMD’s executive officer.
Rule 3503 -- Emissions Inventory and Health Risk Assessment for Railyards -- will require 19 freight railyards in the Southland to conduct
detailed studies of the cancer risks posed to nearby residents from their
toxic emissions.
The rule will require the development of an emissions inventory for
smog-forming and toxic air contaminants from stationary and mobile sources
at railyards in the four-county area, followed by a health risk assessment
for the toxics emissions.
Upon completion of the health risk assessment, railyards with a cancer
risk greater than 10 in a million or a non-cancer hazard index greater than
one must annually notify the public of the risk until it falls below the
public notification level.
Rule 3503 requires railyards to develop an emissions inventory within
one year of rule adoption and complete the health risk assessment within 15
months. A similar provision in an agreement between the California Air
Resources Board and the two largest railroads allows 24 to 33 months for
developing emissions inventories, and does not specify a deadline for
completing risk assessments.
AQMD’s tighter deadline addresses the urgent need to assess high levels
of smog-forming and toxic emissions, especially particulate matter
emissions, from Southland railroad operations.
Adoption of Rule 3503 follows a thorough review by AQMD’s legal staff and
outside counsel of federal and state statutes that AQMD believes provides
the legal authority for the AQMD to adopt rules that require the
quantification of emissions from railroad operations.
Currently, emissions from railyard operations in the Southland are
relatively unknown. Rule 3503 will help provide information about this
largely under-regulated source.
AQMD is the air pollution control agency for Orange County and major
portions of Los Angeles, San Bernardino and Riverside counties.
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