In the Puget Sound area, diesel particulate matter (DPM) accounts for most of the potential cancer risk from all air toxics.10 Puget Sound Clean Air Agency
I was participating in another Cherry Point coal terminal
debate the other day and my opponent was taking me to task over my assertions
(backed up by 170 doctors in Whatcom and Skagit Counties) about the “alleged”
danger of diesel particulates. Actually, that is not accurate--what he was really trying to
do was bury my information under other information so that what I presented
seemed inconsequential. And while
this was going on, all I could think about was Deception Pass.
PM2.5 from diesel exhaust
is more toxic than other forms of PM2.5, such as wood smoke. Washington State Department of Ecology
Deception Pass got its name because Joseph Whidbey thought
that Whidbey Island was a peninsula rather than an island. In short, Joseph was “deceived” by this
seemingly insignificant stretch of water.
The mass of land and vegetation clouded his perception and he basically
could not see the seas for the trees.
Research and investigation, however, yielded another all together
different answer.
The “diesel particulate” deception starts with the
practitioner completing an accounting of all sources of particulates in
Washington. Wood smoke, road dust,
agriculture and stationary industry emit by far the most particulates. Diesel particulates from semis, trains,
and ships combined are less than five percent of the total particulates. At only five percent of the total
particulate load, how can diesel particulates possibly be much of a
problem?
My only response on this is: Go back to the top of this
piece and look at the rather declarative statement from the Puget Sound Clean
Air Agency and then visit the similar statement by the Washington Department of
Ecology. Also, compare the three
pie charts contained on page 3 of the PSCAA publication and realize that the
core differences between the three areas profiled are their relative distances
from or the size of their ports.
If the top quote is true and diesel particulates are on the rare
side, the inescapable conclusion is that they are different—far more risky—than
the other types of particulates. This
is exactly why NRDC and other are trying to get diesel particulate emissions
from railroad yards declared
hazardous wastes.
Think about the above and now watch this video about the mysterious
health impacts observed near the Port of Seattle. How does this make you feel about being told not to worry
about the diesel particulates because there is much more wood smoke? How does this make you feel about the
public relations firm that creates arguments like this and the lobbying group
that added the diesel particulate deception to the talking points of the Cherry
Point coal port proponents?
The Deception Pass story is a charming one. It is one of many regional aspects that
make this region so desirable. The
diesel particulate deception is not charming at all and we cannot let this
deception pass.
Bob Ferris, Executive Director
RE Sources for Sustainable Communities
