California Air Resources Board

Background

The California Air Resources Board (CARB), in cooperation with the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, has conducted a modeling study to estimate the health risks from diesel exhaust in West Oakland. The Port of Oakland and the Union Pacific Railroad provided information on their local marine and rail operations for this risk assessment.  This website describes the study as well as provides information on related community meetings and documents for public review.

Risk Reduction

CARB has adopted goals to reduce the health risk from goods movement. These include: a return to 2001 emission levels or below statewide by 2010, an 85% reduction statewide in the health risk from diesel particulate matter (PM) from all goods movement sources by 2020, and to reduce localized risk in communities adjacent to goods movement facilities as expeditiously as possible. To achieve these and other goals, CARB is developing statewide regulations and other mechanisms to reduce emissions. Please see the CARB Emission Reduction Plan for Ports and Goods Movement in California (April 2006) and the Board resolution adopting the Plan for details.

Risk Assessment Basics

• The West Oakland Community risk assessment estimates the lifetime cancer risk and other health impacts from diesel PM in 2005 using computer models to estimate the concentration of diesel PM in the West Oakland Community
• The West Oakland Community risk assessment does not measure the amount of diesel PM in the air or gather/use health data on local residents

Key Areas to West Oakland Study

• Maritime Port of Oakland operations, at sea and on land (including on-site BNSF railyard)
• Union Pacific Oakland Railyard operations
• Adjacent West Oakland (landside roughly enclosed by I-580, I-980, I-880, and the Harbor Channel, plus non-port marine operations in SF Bay out to Golden Gate Bridge)

Emission Sources

• Diesel trucks and buses
• Locomotives (cargo and passenger trains)
• Ships (cargo and cruise)
• Harbor craft (like tugs, ferries, fishing vessels)
• Diesel equipment at Port and railyards
• Other significant sources of diesel PM

Additional Information and Available Documents

Diesel Particulate Matter Health Risk Assessment for the West Oakland Community

• Final Report  (posted December 5, 2008)
  • Appendix A: Emission Inventory Summary
  • Appendix B: Meteorological and Air Dispersion Modeling Methodology
  • Appendix C: Additional Potential Cancer Risk Isopleths and Data Summaries for Port Operations (Part I), UP Oakland Railyard (Part II), and Non-Port/Non-U P Activity (Part III) 
  • Appendix D: Potentail Cancer Risk Isopleths by Parts and by Categories
  • Appendix E: Spatial Distribution Plots for Emission 
  • Appendix F: Wind Roses and Statistics for Surface Meteorological Stations
  • Appendix G: CALMET Wind Fields at 10 Levels for 4 days in 2000
  • Appendix H:  Sensitivity Studies - Wet and Dry deposition Effects
  • Appendix I:  Growth and Control Factors for Forecasted Emissions Inventory
• Fact Sheet:  Diesel Particulate Matter Health Risk Assessment Study for West Oakland Community: Summary of Final Results 

Emission Inventory Documentation 

• Part I:  Port of Oakland: Seaport Emissions Inventory and Port Construction Inventory Documents
• Part II: UP Oakland Railroad HRA
• Part III:   Emissions Inventory for Other Diesel Emission Sources In and Adjacent to the West Oakland Community (Non-Port and Non-UP Railyard)

West Oakland Community Meeting on March 19, 2008

• Meeting Notice
• Presentation
• Draft Preliminary Summary of Results for West Oakland Community Diesel PM Health Risk Assessment
  • Appendix A:  Draft Emissions Inventory Summary
  • Appendix B:  Draft Additional Potential Cancer Risk Isopleths and Data Summaries
  • Appendix C:  Draft HRA for UPRR Oakland Railyard
  • Appendix D:  Draft Emissions Inventory for Part III
  • Appendix E: Spatial Emission Distributions
• Draft matrix of emission sources, geographic domain, and activity data for each study area in West Oakland, plus information on air quality modeling parameters and risk characterization 
• Bay Area Air Quality Management District: STI Report - Truck Related Businesses and Construction in West Oakland