SACRAMENTO - The California Air Resources Board has fined one of the largest providers of rail and transit products and services in North America, Progress Rail, $390,733 for failing to meet compliance deadlines for cleaning up cargo handling equipment and to submit required annual reports. The company was in violation at four of its California locations: ports and/or intermodal rail yards in Oakland, San Bernardino, San Diego and Terminal Island (Los Angeles).

Since ARB first issued a Notice of Violation to Progress Rail in March, 2013, the company, with corporate headquarters in Alabama, has replaced, retired or retrofit all equipment in question and is now fully compliant with California’s Cargo Handling Equipment Regulation.

“Mobile cargo handling equipment is powered by diesel-fueled engines that emit toxic particulate matter, which, if not controlled, can cause health problems,” said ARB Enforcement Chief Jim Ryden. “We are pleased that Progress Rail took our concerns very seriously and worked quickly to correct its problems.”

Prior to settling with ARB, the company spent $1.3 million to ensure its fleet was in compliance and implemented a corrective action plan to address future compliance. Progress Rail also re-established internal controls to help prevent similar problems from reoccurring.

As outlined in its settlement agreement, Progress Rail, a wholly owned subsidiary of Caterpillar, will pay $293,050 to the Air Pollution Control Fund to support air quality research, and $97,683 to a supplemental environmental project to help retrofit school buses with diesel filters. 

Diesel exhaust contains a variety of harmful gases and more than 40 other known cancer-causing compounds. In 1998, California identified diesel particulate matter as a toxic air contaminant based on its potential to cause cancer, premature death and other health problems.