Source - World News Network/August 12, 2008 California regulators yesterday approved the nation's strictest rules to reduce polluting emissions from oceangoing ships, saying it will help prevent cancer and premature deaths along the state's coast. This new rules will be implemented beginning July 1, 2009, stating that all oceangoing vessels that use the state's ports must use cleaner fuel to power their engines and boilers. Ships at the ports in San Diego, the San Francisco Bay Area, Los Angeles and Long Beach, as well as inland ports for oceangoing vessels in Sacramento and Stockton, would have to adhere to the new rules. Exempted are military, government and research vessels Ships needing modifications to use cleaner fuels would be exempt until renovations were completed. Shipping companies and cruise lines oppose the state air board's rules, arguing that California has no jurisdiction to regulate their operations beyond the state's coastal zone (meaning waters that extend 3 nautical miles from the coast). “International ships running in international waters under international treaties should be handled under international laws,” said T.L. Garrett, vice president of the Pacific Merchant Shipping Association, which represents about 60 ocean-carrier lines and cargo terminals. A state attempt to impose a similar rule failed in 2006 after a federal judge ruled that California didn't have the authority to set ship-emission standards without approval of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
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