SACRAMENTO -- The California Air Resources Board (ARB) today announced the results of its audit of the Ventura County Air Pollution Control District's (District) Carl Moyer Program, a grant-funded effort to reduce vehicle emissions through the replacement or retrofit of dirty diesel engines.

The District's Moyer Program is the state's first to be audited as part of a plan to examine the local air pollution control districts' allocation of funds in the 2002/2003 and 2003/2004 fiscal years. ARB staff also reviewed whether the program's implementation in fiscal years 2004/2005 and 2005/2006 were compliant with current requirements.

ARB Chairman, Dr. Robert Sawyer said, "Program audits are needed to assure the public we are doing our best work in a cost effective manner. We want to satisfy the public that everything within reason to clean our air is being done and we are obtaining the maximum reductions in air pollution for the money we invest in these projects."

The District is responsible for air quality in a region with a population of 800,000 and has operated the Carl Moyer program since its inception in 1998. To date, all of the $7.9 million in Moyer program funds have been obligated and 79 percent of the grant-funded projects are in operation. To strengthen this effort, the District provided an additional $2.9 million in matching funds.

The majority of the District's Moyer funds have been used to cover new alternative fuel trucks and cleaner engines for marine vessels and construction equipment. So far, the District's Moyer Program has paid for 190 cleaner engines, which obtained 202 tons of reductions in smog-forming nitrogen oxides (NOx) emissions, 16 tons of reductions in diesel soot at an average cost-effectiveness of approximately $3,700 per ton of NOx (better than the program's state average cost effectiveness).

The District has made commendable efforts in the following areas:

• Leading Program Refinements (District is at the forefront in a number of instances that go beyond the requirements in the Carl Moyer Program Guidelines.)
• Timely Obligation and Expenditure of Allocation (District's Most Commendable Effort)
• Responsiveness to Audit (Indicative of the District staff's commitment to the Carl Moyer Program.)
• Timely Reporting (Complete annual and final reports are usually submitted before the deadlines.)

The program review showed that the District, through the grant-funded projects, efficiently and effectively obtained surplus emission reductions, followed the Health and Safety Code requirements, and met the applicable Carl Moyer Program Guidelines. The most significant finding emerging from the ARB review pertains to the District's funding of two ineligible projects. In response, the District has already repaid $98,493 and reprogrammed $221,493 to eligible projects, thereby maintaining all of the anticipated emission reductions from the program.

Overall, the ARB audit found that the District operates a very good program and most of the findings relate only to administrative issues, which the District staff has already addressed.

The Air Resources Board is a department of the California Environmental Protection Agency. ARB's mission is to promote and protect public health, welfare, and ecological resources through effective reduction of air pollutants while recognizing and considering effects on the economy. The ARB oversees all air pollution control efforts in California to attain and maintain health based air quality standards.

The energy challenge facing California is real. Every Californian needs to take immediate action to reduce energy consumption. For a list of simple ways you can reduce demand and cut your energy cost, see our website at http://www.arb.ca.gov.