CARB fines City of Camarillo $5,250 for air quality violations

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The California Air Resources Board recently fined the City of Camarillo $5,250 for diesel truck inspection violations in 2006 and 2007. CARB says its enforcement teams found that city staff failed to meet the Transit Fleet Vehicle Requirements and that the city did not inspect its heavy-duty vehicles.

“For over a decade now, we’ve known that exhaust from diesel emissions is hazardous to our health,” says CARB Chairman Mary Nichols. “Cities can go a long way in protecting the lungs of their citizens by regularly inspecting their diesel truck fleets for excessive smoke emissions.”

As part of the settlement, the city is required to:

  • Guarantee employees responsible for conducting the inspections attend a training class on diesel emissions compliance testing and provide certificates of completion within one year;
  • Provide documentation to CARB that the inspections are being carried out for the next four years;
  • Ensure all of the city’s heavy-duty diesel vehicles have their software updated with the latest low-NOx (oxides of nitrogen emissions) programming;
  • Instruct vehicle operators to comply with the state’s idling regulations;
  • Comply with requirements of the fleet rule for transit agencies; and
  • Ensure that all diesel trucks are up to federal emissions standards for the vehicle model year and are labeled properly with an emissions control label.
  • The City of Camarillo will pay $5,250 in penalties, and $3,937.50 will go to the California Air Pollution Control Fund, providing funding for projects and research to improve California’s air quality. The Peralta Community College District will receive $656.25 to fund emissions education classes conducted by participating California community colleges. The California Pollution Control Financing Authority will receive the remaining $656.25 to fund low-interest loans for owners of off-road diesel-powered construction vehicles.