California Air Resources Board

A coalition of automobile trade groups has sued the California Air Resources Board over a new regulation that extends warranties on some vehicle emissions equipment, claiming it could cost its members billions of dollars. The suit was filed last week in Los Angeles Superior Court by 11 organizations that represent the aftermarket car parts and service industry. At issue is a rule, approved Jan.

Low-income community groups in five California cities launched a statewide campaign Tuesday to "fight at every turn" any global-warming regulation that allows industries to trade carbon emissions, saying it would amount to "gambling on public health." The 21-point "Environmental Justice Movement Declaration" challenges the stance of Gov.

When the state Air Resources Board met two weeks ago for an important vote, one member -- Daniel Sperling -- took center stage. At issue was whether the board would revise a mandate requiring automakers to produce 25,000 emission-free vehicles from 2012 through 2014. After hours of public comments, a board member proposed cutting that number to 10,000. Sperling went further, calling for 7,500.

As many as 24,000 deaths annually in California are linked to chronic exposure to fine particulate pollution, triple the previous official estimate of 8,200, according to state researchers. The revised figures are based on a review of new research across the nation about the hazards posed by microscopic particles, which sink deep into the lungs.

Money collected in Los Angeles County to clean up its polluted ports would be shared with the Central Valley under a proposal by the Schwarzenegger administration that is drawing opposition from Southern California leaders. Sponsors of legislation that would charge shippers about $60 a container in the ports of Los Angeles, Long Beach and Oakland had intended to use the money in areas close to those cities' ports to reduce traffic congestion and air pollution.

Few dispute that reducing planet-heating greenhouse gas emissions is a good idea. But fewer still know how much it will cost. Wednesday, California officials served up their official economic analysis of the state's ambitious global warming plan: By 2020, it would boost the state's expected $2.6-trillion gross product by $4 billion, create 100,000 additional jobs and increase per capita income by $200, the state Air Resources Board concluded after months of complex modeling.

Two decades ago, Rosa Vielmas, young and hopeful, moved to Riverside County for cleaner air. Goodbye to smoggy East Los Angeles. Hello to Mira Loma, an unincorporated speck of a village, and a one-story stucco bungalow with a yard. "We could see the stars," she recalled. But that was before Mira Loma became one of Southern California's "diesel death zones," as activists call the truck-choked freeways and distribution hubs that fan out from the massive ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.

Two decades ago, Rosa Vielmas, young and hopeful, moved to Riverside County for cleaner air. Goodbye to smoggy East Los Angeles. Hello to Mira Loma, an unincorporated speck of a village, and a one-story stucco bungalow with a yard. "We could see the stars," she recalled. But that was before Mira Loma became one of Southern California's "diesel death zones," as activists call the truck-choked freeways and distribution hubs that fan out from the massive ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.

With creations like the "Undertaker" and "666 El Diablo," Jesse James and his West Coast Choppers team have become TV stars and automotive icons by turning average motorcycles into pimped-up machines. But California air regulators announced Friday a $271,250 fine against James, the co-producer and host of "Monster Garage" and "Motorcycle Mania," saying that 50 of his custom-built choppers ran afoul of California's clean-air rules.

California air regulators Thursday unanimously passed the world's toughest controls on toxic formaldehyde in wood products widely used in kitchen cabinets, countertops and other construction. Environmentalists, public health advocates, and manufacturers and distributors of formaldehyde-free wood cheered the news. Formaldehyde, widely used as a glue in wood veneer, plywood and other construction materials, has been shown to cause throat cancer, respiratory ailments and other problems.