The New York City Council will vote today to choke off those black plumes of diesel pollution emitted by city-owned and contracted vehicles -- including 6,000 school buses.
NEW YORK, N.Y. — The New York City Council will vote today to choke off those black plumes of diesel pollution emitted by city-owned and contracted vehicles -- including 6,000 school buses.
Joined by environmental and health activists, Council officials gathered on the steps of City Hall yesterday to hail the expected approval today of a package of five clean air bills and two pesticide control bills.
Together, the measures will represent "the most significant air pollution legislation ever passed by the Council," said City Council Speaker Gifford Miller (D-Manhattan).
The clean air bills were spearheaded by City Councilman James Gennaro (D-Queens), chairman of the Environmental Protection Committee. He said they represent a "literal breath of fresh air" for New Yorkers.
The bills also have the backing of Mayor Bloomberg, according to Miller.
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"That plume of black soot that follows many diesel trucks [and buses] is linked with increased asthma attacks, bronchitis, cancer and emphysema," said Richard Kassel, senior attorney of the National Resources Defense Council. "One study has found that 1,800 New Yorkers face premature death every year at our current level of pollution."
Louise Vetter of the American Lung Association said diesel pollution is a major cause of asthma rates among children that are as high as 25 percent in some city neighborhoods.
Under one of the bills, all school buses contracted by the Education Department will have to start using ultra-low sulfur diesel fuel by September of next year.
In addition, all privately owned school buses will have to be retrofitted with the "best available pollution control technology" by the following September. And any new buses will have to come equipped with clean engines that meet federal standards.
The other bills apply similar requirements to diesel-powered vehicles used and operated by city agencies, to trucks contracted by the city to transport garbage and recyclables and to city-licensed sightseeing buses.
The bills covering pesticides require the city to reduce the use of pesticides on city property and to rely primarily on the least toxic pesticides. One of the bills ties in to a new state law requiring neighborhood notification before the application of pesticides.
Under the notification law, the city must give 48-hour notice before a pesticide application. Commercial applications on private property also will require 48-hour notice, under penalty of a $5,000 fine. And applications by homeowners will require the posting of warning flags after an application, under penalty of a $100 fine.
Source: Reuters
