FMCSA READY TO COMPLY WITH 9TH CIRCUIT MEXICAN TRUCK ORDER.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration said Aug. 26 it was ready to complete the full environmental analysis ordered months ago by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals to determine the impact on the nation's air quality when U.S. roads and highways are opened to Mexican commercial vehicles, as authorized under the North American Free Trade Agreement.

The suit was brought by Public Citizen, Environmental Law Foundation, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, the California Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO, and the California Trucking Association, who claimed giving Mexican trucks access to U.S. highways and roads would dramatically increase air pollution.

The Natural Resources Defense Council intervened in support of the plaintiffs and California Attorney General Bill Lockyer participated as a friend of the court in their support.

"FMCSA is ready now, and will be ready whenever the Mexican border is opened, to ensure the safety of border operations," NHTSA Administrator Annette M. Sandberg said.

She said FMCSA had awarded a $1.8 million contract to ICF Consulting of Fairfax, VA, to prepare a full environmental impact statement that analyzes the short- and long-term environmental impacts of the Mexican trucks while in the United States and expects the EIS to be finished in 12 to 18 months.

She said FMCSA would make the draft EIS available to the public for comment at public meetings throughout the United States and would provide other opportunities for the public to submit comments.

She said FMCSA was ready to begin work immediately to comply with the court's ruling , she added, "but not to the exclusion of other legal avenues, including the possibility of asking the U.S. Supreme to review the lower court's decision."

The administration had claimed allowing Mexican trucks to have access to U.S. roads and highways would have no significant environmental impact.

The plaintiffs argued there would be significant potential impact because: Mexican trucks would emit twice as much particulate matter and nitrogen oxides as U.S. trucks in the country by 2010, at least 30,000 Mexican diesel trucks - including many older, pre-1994 trucks - would be on the roads, there was no system in place to inspect the emissions of Mexican trucks crossing the border and Mexican trucks - unlike U.S. trucks - might be allowed to remove "defeat devices" which enable them to test clean at inspection sites but run dirty on the open road.