The California Air Resources Board, also known as CARB or ARB, is the "clean air agency" in the government of California. Established in 1967 when then-governor Ronald Reagan signed the Mulford-Carrell Act, combining the Bureau of Air Sanitation and the Motor Vehicle Pollution Control Board, CARB is a department within the cabinet-level California Environmental Protection Agency.
The stated goals of CARB include attaining and maintaining healthy air quality; protecting the public from exposure to toxic air contaminants; and providing innovative approaches for complying with air pollution rules and regulations. CARB has also been instrumental in driving innovation throughout the global automotive industry through programs such as its ZEV mandate.
One of CARB's responsibilities is to define vehicle emissions standards. California is the only state permitted to issue emissions standards under the federal Clean Air Act, subject to a waiver from the United States Environmental Protection Agency. Other states may choose to follow CARB or federal standards but may not set their own.
Governance
CARB's governing board is made up of 14 members, soon to be 16 with 2 members being non-voting.
Six of the governor-appointed board members are chosen from regional air pollution control or air quality management districts, including one each from:
- Bay Area AQMD (San Francisco Bay Area), currently John Gioia
- San Diego County APCD, currently Ron Roberts
- San Joaquin Valley APCD, currently Alexander Sherriffs, M.D.
- South Coast AQMD, currently Judy Mitchell
- A Sacramento-area district: Sacramento Metropolitan AQMD, Yolo-Solano AQMD, Placer County APCD, Feather River AQMD, or El Dorado County AQMD, currently Phil Serna
Three governor-appointed board members are experts in automotive engineering, currently Dan Sperling; science, agriculture, or law, currently John Eisenhut; and medicine, currently John R. Balmes, M.D.. The governor's three remaining appointees are members of the public, including an expert in air pollution control or one of the fields mentioned above.
The two legislature-appointed board members work directly with communities affected by air pollution. They are currently Diane Takvorian and Dean Florez, appointed by the Assembly and Senate respectively.
Organizational structure
CARB has nine major divisions:
- Administrative Services Division
- Enforcement Division
- Mobile Source Control Division
- Emissions Compliance, Automotive Regulations and Science Division
- Monitoring and Laboratory Division
- Office of Information Services
- Air Quality Planning and Science Division
- Research Division
- Toxics and Transportation Division
- Industrial Strategies Division
Air Quality Planning and Science Division
The division assesses the extent of California's air quality problems and the progress being made to abate them, coordinates statewide development of clean air plans and maintains databases pertinent to air quality and emissions. The division's technical support work provides a basis for clean air plans and CARB's regulatory programs. This support includes management and interpretation of emission inventories, air quality data, meteorological data and of air quality modeling.
The Air Quality Planning and Science Division has five branches:
- Emission Inventory Branch
- Modeling & Meteorology Branch
- Air Quality Data Branch
- Air Quality & Transportation Planning Branch
- Mobile Source Analysis Branch
Atmospheric Modeling & Support Section
The Atmospheric Modeling & Support Section is one of three sections within the Modeling & Meteorology Branch. The other two sections are the Regional Air Quality Modeling Section and the Meteorology Section.
The air quality and atmospheric pollution dispersion models routinely used by this Section include a number of the models recommended by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The section uses models which were either developed by CARB or whose development was funded by CARB, such as:
- CALPUFF â€" Originally developed by the Sigma Research Company (SRC) under contract to CARB. Currently maintained by the TRC Solution Company under contract to the U.S. EPA.
- CALGRID â€" Developed by CARB and currently maintained by CARB.
- SARMAP â€" Developed by CARB and currently maintained by CARB.
Role in reducing greenhouse gases
Alternative Fuel Vehicle Incentive Program
Alternative Fuel Vehicle Incentive Program (also known as Fueling Alternatives) is funded by the California Air Resources Board (CARB), offered throughout the State of California and administered by the California Center for Sustainable Energy (CCSE).
California zero-emissions vehicle
The CARB ZEV program was enacted by the California government to promote the use of zero emission vehicles. The program goal is to reduce the pervasive air pollution affecting the main metropolitan areas in the state, particularly in Los Angeles, where prolonged pollution episodes are frequent. The first ruling was the 1990 Low-Emission Vehicle (LEV I) Program.
The first definition has its origin in the California ZEV rule, adopted as part of the 1990 Low-Emission Vehicle (LEV I) Program mandated by CARB. The ZEV regulation has evolved and been modified several times since 1990, and several new partial or low-emission categories were created and defined as follows:
- LEV (Low Emission Vehicle): The least stringent emission standard for all new cars sold in California beyond 2004.
- ULEV (Ultra Low Emission Vehicle): 50% cleaner than the average new 2003 model year vehicle.
- SULEV (Super Ultra Low Emission Vehicle): These vehicles emit substantially lower levels of hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide, oxides of nitrogen and particulate matter than conventional vehicles. They are 90% cleaner than the average new 2003 model year vehicle.
- PZEV (Partial Zero Emission Vehicle): Meets SULEV tailpipe standards, has a 15-year / 150,000 mile warranty, and zero evaporative emissions. These vehicles are 80% cleaner than the average 2002 model year car.
- AT PZEV (Advanced Technology PZEV): These are advanced technology vehicles that meet PZEV standards and include ZEV enabling technology. They are 80% cleaner than the average 2002 model year car.
- ZEV (Zero Emission Vehicle): Zero tailpipe emissions, and 98% cleaner than the average new 2003 model year vehicle.
The Low-Emission Vehicle Program is currently under revision to define modified ZEV regulations for 2015 models. CARB estimates the ZEV program will result in 15% ZEV sales by 2025. The share remained at 3% between 2014 and 2016. Battery vehicles receive 3 or 4 credits, while fuel cell cars receive 9. As of 2016, a credit has a market value of $3-4,000, and some automakers have more credits than required. CARB voted unanimously in March 2017 to require automakers to average 54.5 mpg for new cars in 2025.
Low-carbon fuel standard
The Low-Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) requires oil refineries and distributors to ensure that the mix of fuel they sell in the Californian market meets the established declining targets for greenhouse gas emissions measured in CO2-equivalent grams per unit of fuel energy sold for transport purposes. The 2007 Governor's LCFS directive calls for a reduction of at least 10% in the carbon intensity of California's transportation fuels by 2020. These reductions include not only tailpipe emissions but also all other associated emissions from production, distribution and use of transport fuels within the state. Therefore, California LCFS considers the fuel's full life cycle, also known as the "well to wheels" or "seed to wheels" efficiency of transport fuels. The standard is aimed to reduce the state’s dependence on petroleum, create a market for clean transportation technology, and stimulate the production and use of alternative, low-carbon fuels in California.
On April 23, 2009, CARB approved the specific rules for the LCFS that will go into effect in January 2011. The rule proposal prepared by its technical staff was approved by a 9-1 vote, to set the 2020 maximum carbon intensity reference value to 86 grams of carbon dioxide released per megajoule of energy produced.
PHEV Research Center
The PHEV Research Center was launched with funding from the California Air Resources Board.
See also
- California Air Resources Board
- List of California Air Districts
- Bay Area Air Quality Management District
- South Coast Air Quality Management District
- 2008 California Statewide Truck and Bus Rule
- Carl Moyer Memorial Air Quality Standards Attainment Program
- Other
- Bioenergy Action Plan
- California Center for Sustainable Energy
- California Code of Regulations
- California Energy Commission
- California Environmental Protection Agency
- California Public Utilities Commission
- Carl Moyer Program
- Climate change in California
- Ecology of California
- Emission standards
- Emissions trading
- Greenhouse gas
- Greenhouse gas emissions by the United States
- Million Solar Roofs (SB 1)
- Plug-in hybrids in California
- Pollution in California
- Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative
- Timeline of major US environmental and occupational health regulation
- Texas Low Emission Diesel standards
- Upstream emission factor
- US Emission standard
- Vehicle acronyms and abbreviations
- Ventura County Air Pollution Control District
- Who Killed the Electric Car?
- Zero-emissions vehicle
References
External links
- Official California Air Resources Board website
- CARB's Low-Emission Vehicle Regulations and Test Procedures
- CARB web site page on Climate Change
- CARB's Diesel Emission Control Strategies Verification
- News
- California charts course to fight global warming: California's greenhouse gas emissions by 30 percent over the next 12 years.
- California air board announces plan for carbon-credit trading.
