Vitriol towards Long Beach ticks off the movers and shakers
Business leaders in Southern California are taking a hard look at eco-activists and asking why they are adopting such a harsh, emotional line to Long Beach's agreement with the American Trucking Association (ATA) over the Clean Truck plan.
Cargo volumes are still lousy at Long Beach and Los Angeles, (despite optimistic spin put out by boosters such as JP Morgan, which seem to be merrily getting back into the habits of pre-Great Recession days), but emotions over the truck issue are seen as getting in the way of any joint effort to get the ports out of the soup.
The Natural Resources Defense Council – one of the main opponents of the ATA-- says Long Beach has "sold out" its "citizens" by settling out of court with the ATA, and allowing owner/driver operators to continue working. What's more, the agreement is a "worthless settlement", says the council, a tone more suited to labor rallies and emotional public demonstrations than a comment on a legal issue.
The facts are that truckers will still have to comply with the anti-pollution rules at Long Beach (virtually identical to those of its neighbor) or find the gate booms lowered, literally. The port has relented on other rules such as restrictions on where trucks can be parked at night.
Next door, Los Angeles continues with the legal tussle with the trucking association, which objects to the requirement that all truckers become employees of established companies. The ATA says this limits competition. Others object because they fear, probably rightly, that the Teamsters will get their claws in.
No one, least of all the ATA, opposes the anti-pollution aspects of the plan. And this is where the resources council and other commendable activist groups are said to be losing their perspective.
If one judges it correctly, the council suspects that Long Beach is ignoring pollution by handing out RFID tags to all truckers now serving the port -- even if their vehicles fail the anti-pollution standards. Such a change of heart by the port seems absurd, given the years devoted to achieving cleaner air.
It is almost impossible to imagine the harbor commissioners going against their publicly stated drive to get the dirt out of the port. That would amount to dereliction of duty. Not only would they be kicked out of their posts they would face individual and collective lawsuits that would paralyze the administration.
Villifiers of Long Beach have presented no evidence to back up their serious accusations and that is where the hollowness of their campaign shows through. Nor have they answered those who fear the encroachment of the trade union at Los Angeles, even though the union's own declarations give real cause for nervousness.
Long Beach has saved a whopping sum on lawyers' fees. LA is set on keeping the driver/employee condition and has roped in lobbyists.
The activists are driven by noble motives and the good of the community at large. They reckon that only companies have the money to pay for new equipment and vehicles. This already seems to be untrue as some owner/drivers -- actual figures are not known – have been able to pay for new trucks.
Explanations are being awaited from the activists as to why they are so vitriolic in their stance.