A key hearing will be held in San Diego May 25, that could lead to more stringent air pollution rules for diesel-powered bulldozers, forklifts and commercial mowers.
The California Air Resources Board is targeting as many as 180,000 off-road diesel vehicles for retrofit or replacement. The measures are designed to curb up to 85 percent of the vehicles’ pollution-causing emissions by 2020.
However, the construction industry says the new regulations would cause financial hardships to contractors, builders as well as distributors and rental companies.
CARB officials maintain that considerable flexibility will be built into the regulations because environmentally acceptable construction equipment machinery is not yet available. They also point out that even though the regulations will cause financial hardships to the construction industry, failure to impose them could lead to the loss of federal highway funding, which would also negatively impact the state’s construction industry.
The hearing, open to the public, will be held at the San Diego Marriott Del Mar Hotel.
