'Indirect Source Rule' Would Clean Up Warehouses in Southern California

Dr. Joe Lyou, CEO of the Coalition for Clean Air, walks through the legal necessity of South Coast AQMD's proposed Indirect Source Rule, which aims to accelerate the transition to zero-emission technologies and fleet electrification.

1 minute read

May 6, 2021, 10:00 AM PDT

By Clare Letmon


California

Corona, California | Matt Gush / Shutterstock

Last week, environmental and community groups reached a $47 million settlement with the developer of a proposed mega-warehouse in Moreno Valley to invest up to $50 million in solutions to electrify the facility. With the exponential rise of e-commerce in the last decade, the resulting increase in diesel truck traffic serving the booming logistics industry is both a growing sector of the economy and a significant contributor to air pollution in the region. To address the disproportionate health impacts of the industry on neighboring communities, on Friday, May 7, the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) will vote on an Indirect Source Rule to require and incentivize the clean-up of warehouses in metropolitan Los Angeles.

To frame this important vote, TPR sat down with Dr. Joe Lyou, CEO of the Coalition for Clean Air, who walks readers through the legal necessity of the first-of-its-kind rule that aims to make better neighbors of industry giants, like Amazon, and accelerate the transition to zero-emission technologies and fleet electrification.

“Southcoast AQMD must adopt all feasible measures in order to achieve the state standards and this [Indirect Source Review Rule] is clearly a feasible measure within its authority. [Note: All feasible measures requirement is in the California Health and Safety Code §40462(a).]"—Joe Lyou

To read the full interview, visit The Planning Report.

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