What are the health risks from locomotive diesel emissions?
In October 2004, CARB conducted a health risk assessment to estimate the cancer risk from diesel exhaust from locomotives at the Union Pacific J.R. Davis Yard in Roseville. The results of this analysis showed that the maximum average off-site diesel PM cancer risks from the facility ranged from 900 to 1,000 in 1 million. In comparison, the AQMD’s Rule 1402 limits the cancer risk from existing facilities to less than 25 in a million, moreover oil refineries and power plants pose a maximum cancer risk of less than 10 in 1 million. The health risk assessment conducted at the J.R. Davis Yard was the first of its kind by any air quality agency in California. As a result, the cancer risks from rail yards in Southern California are not known. Based on the size of rail yards and their proximity to residents, the risks at rail yards in the Basin may well be significant. AQMD adopted Rule 3503 — Emissions Inventory and Health Risk Assessment for Rail Yards — to develop emissions inventories an
