Fifty-five percent of large warehouses are out of compliance with new regulations from air regulators. They could be fined up to $11,000 a day.
Southern California air regulators announced Wednesday they will launch a sweeping enforcement initiative to compel large warehouses that have resisted a new pollution reduction program for months.
In 2021, the South Coast Air Quality Management District adopted a first-of-its-kind rule that requires large warehouses to offset pollution from the truck traffic they attract. Operators could mitigate these emissions by taking a range of actions, such as installing solar panels or using zero-emission forklifts. Otherwise, they would need to pay a fee.“Time is up for those not complying with our rule,” said Wayne Nastri, South Coast AQMD Executive Officer.
Warehouses that fail to register with the agency could face financial penalties as high as $11,710 for each day they fail to come into compliance. The enforcement action will begin with warehouses operating in disadvantaged communities. In the past decade, hundreds of developers of colossal warehouses have sought to gain a foothold in Southern California’s bustling hub of goods movement, especially in San Bernardino and Riverside counties. Today, the heavy-duty trucks and cargo-moving equipment that operate at the region’s major warehouses contribute nearly as much smog-forming emissions as refineries, power plants and other heavy polluters combined, according to air district officials.
The air district’s warehouse rule aimed to curtail these emissions by 10-15% over five years. If they fell short of their goal, they would need to pay a mitigation fee, which the air district could invest in clean air projects.
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