Travis County Commssioners Court
July 1, 2003
The Closed Caption log for this Commissioners Court agenda item is provided by Travis County Internet Services. Since this file is derived from the Closed Captions created during live cablecasts, there are occasional spelling and grammatical errors. This Closed Caption log is not an official record the Commissioners Court Meeting and cannot be relied on for official purposes. For official records please contact the County Clerk at (512) 854-4722.
Item 23
23. Consider and take appropriate action on the following air quality remedies: a. An update on actions already taken by Travis County government and necessary modifications; if any. And b, additional recommendations and implementation schedule. I guess on a I知 looking for what it is that we have been attempting to do and what [indiscernible] if any we need to make at this point.
>> yes, good afternoon, I知 joe gieselman with the transportation natural resource department. In the backup the attachment 1 is a listing of all of the items that Travis County is currently doing to lower its emissions, by Travis County I mean Travis County government, its employees and its operations. Among the most important thing that we have done is agreed to purchase a low emissions diesel fuel for this coming ozone season that will stashly reduce our emissions from our heavy equipment andes sell operating vehicles. In addition we have -- we have built about 2.8 miles of sidewalk, of course to extend to those that -- to the extent that those are used by pedestrians, it means that vehicles are not being used by those same trips. We are also making improvements to intersections, 15 intersections and 26 signal light intersections to improve traffic flow. Whereas we don't have as many congested intersections and signalized intersections as the city of Austin, this particular measure is most attractive at reducing the emissions because the more you can get those vehicles moving instead of idling, at traffic signals, the -- the better off you are. It's just that more of those congested intersections are inside the city limits. We also use a low voc asphalt and striping materials, efforts in e government are also helping, the more that we can get people to do their county business by the internet, that means they are not making trips by vehicles on the highway system. Same with direct deposits. We have a very high percentage of our employees who are using direct deposits from their bimonthly paycheck. We also contribute $30,000 a year to the clean air force. Immediate outreach education to the public. And we distribute $20,000 a year to the staffing of the clean air force. To do the modeling that's necessary for our planning process. So those are some of the concrete things that we are doing. Also, we are converting our fleet to propane gasoline, a propane fuel. The alternative fuels program and in that regard we are probably the leaders among the local governments in the metropolitan area. We can do more. We should be working to reduce the number of vehicles, county vehicles that are idling either i'd deling at the work site or idling while doing their duties, which sheriff puties often are in a construction zone idling. Of course they are in their air conditioned vehicles --
>> running air conditioners.
>> idling going on. If there's an alternative way of doing that, by reducing the number of idling vehicles, that would help reduce emissions. We should also look to reduce employee trips in our pars -- either by participating in car pool programs or by encouraging the use of mass transit, particularly during ozone action days. And then the more we can clean up our fleet by making sure that all of our [indiscernible] devices on our fleets are working, that our cars are maintained, tuned up to reduce unnecessary emissions. Those are some of the additional things that we can do by working with county departments or managing these fleets and also those employees who are the workforce of this county government. At some point we need to talk about additional county staff to help us manage the clean air program. Because in addition to working with the county departments to coordinate interdepartment efforts, much like the -- the Travis County combined charities, in order to raise money, volunteer efforts, we really have to have an education campaign going on and coordinating within each one of these departments to communicate the strategy, you need a cheerleader, you need someone who is going to keep the departments on point. That takes staffing, when we start implementing measures outside of county government, for instance, a maintenance program that will affect not only county programs but every citizen out there, we are going to need additional staff resources to do it. We are suggesting that in the near future we probably need to hire a -- a -- what we call for lack of a better word an environmental engineer who can coordinate with other outside entities in developing these programs that truly have the most effect on emissions. That's going to be, quite frankly, in how we use the private fleet, our own vehicles, personal vehicles. And the vehicles owned by private companies. Off road vehicles, for instance, we can manage our own county equipment on our fle vehicles, but the percentage of those that are part of the total fleet is really not outline that great. We are going to have to talk with, working with the [indiscernible], working with private vendors, that -- working with the people who have off road fleet and getting them to work in a volunteer effort to reduce emissions. That will take time. It will take staff resources to do it. We are suggesting that at least in the near term that we use our existing environmental resources, stephen williams, I mean charles williams in particular who is working with the keep the Austin beautiful and other outreach programs. Start to tap in in coordinating an air quality among county departments, but then also hire a full-time f.t.e. To start outreach with the outside private parties in starting to mount that clean air program that's going to be required to really reduce emissions. [indiscernible] because quite frankly, most of our emissions program is directly related to the vehicle and either the off road vehicle or the private vehicle. And the -- a refuse new -- the revenue that we get for the road and bridge program is derived primarily from vehicles. In this case, license plate tags are in the future of sale of private vehicles, so there's a direct relationship between the revenue derived and its use for reducing emissions from those same private vehicles. I知 running out of voice.
>> okay. My initial question, i'll just use it as a question, was the use of the word engineer associated with that position because that almost says that that's supposed to be some kind of a technical person and quite frankly what I have seen used quite effectively related to the folks that have been hired over at the clean air force, you don't necessarily have to be something with an engineering degree to be extraordinarily well versed in all of the scientific stuff. It really has to do with outreach, communication, et cetera. So that was just the word that just kind of like, yeee, kind of --
>> actually, that was kind of intentional. Clean air force is an outreach group, public education, planning. To most extent the people that we have involved right now are policy thinkers. This is taking it from the policy and the planning and putting the flesh and bones to the program. These are the people, quite frankly, that are going to have to go out and talk to contractors that walk the talk. That are -- that know what it means to implement a program to put it together and to make it work. We are talking about hard science here. We are no longer talking about the pom end of it. We are talking about putting together the nuts and bolts of a program and making it work. This is operations and maintenance and things that are going to affect the day to day livelihood of people. From people who drive cars to people who are working in mechanics shops that are trying to set up an I and m program to contractors who are trying to make a living, we are asking them to reduce emissions. I need to go beyond policy thinkers. I need to go to the people who are talking with the managers of these programs, engineers of these programs. I知 trying to relate at a much different level with this position. Than we are currently talking and planning.
>> being on. Let's go down that path. I知 thinking in terms of the folks that we've got, the folks that can tell you everything that you want to know about road and bridge and with fleet, I don't think they are engineers. But you can't get anybody that knows more about road and bridge than a don wheeler. Don is not an engineer. It's just -- I understand what you are saying in terms of you're looking for somebody that has that technical expertise. But just engineer is just a word to me that just sent me in a different direction of wanting to understand what you are trying to say here. Your explanation there is a good one. I didn't get that communicated through the use of the word environmental engineer. But I am understanding what you are saying.
>> all right. That's my intent. And analogous to [indiscernible] ability. It's one thing to have a planner give a concept, the architect to put it in shape. But the engineer builds it. I知 looking for a builder. I知 looking for someone that takes a concept and puts it in nothing. It doesn't necessarily have to be an engineer, per se, but I知 looking for the type of person that has the management capability, the know-how to build a program and to implement it.
>> that I understood. Thank you.
>> joe, having an engineering license is not a minimum job qualification.
>> [laughter]
>> they don't have to be certified engineer.
>> no.
>> that's where I was getting confused. That's where you threw me. Thank you.
>> joe, I guess the thing that -- that you have laid out, I知 not going to ask you to repeat it, but -- but laid out pertaining to what Travis County is doing to -- to reduce our emissions into air and of course there is always a cost associated with clean air and it's -- it's going to cost us something. Just in the things that we have done has been a cost, you had mentioned the propane. Burning fuel for vehicles that we have on line as just being one of those things. The diesel that we are using now. Proposed to use as far as the contracting, piggybacking with other governmental entities is another way. But I知 kind of concerned since we are going in the direction, of course the public is going to have to get involved with this sooner or later. And I know that you did mention something about the -- the maintenance and inspection program, which is something that -- that I guess in some places they are probably already doing some things, I知 thinking about harris or maybe dallas county, because there are, you consider the scenario as far as being mandated by the federal government to clean up their air, which is -- which is something that they are looking at. But if -- if this particular program is -- is implemented here in Travis County, basically talking about the maintenance and inspection where a vehicle has to go in and get tested, through an inspection process, what would that probably cost -- do we have any figures as far as what that probably costs the person that would be getting their vehicle inspected to go through one of those technically sophisticated type of machines to receive an inspection sticker.
>> I think probably in Austin at least $20 per year for an inspection.
>> okay.
>> that's just for the inspection.
>> just the inspection.
>> you have to maintain the vehicle. As a result of that inspection, we are probably talking hundreds of dollars of maintenance costs to maintain the vehicle so that it's meeting the standards. Some vehicle will cost more, the newer vehicles are already fairly well equipped with on board diagnostic equipment and are produced by the manufacturer to be less polluting. A later -- the later model vehicles are typically where your costs will be higher. So -- but clean air is not free. All of us are going to have to pay, as a way of doing business, for clean air. It's a cost of doing business, if I drive an automobile, part of my cost of owning and operating that automobile is to pay for the clean air that it takes to drive a clean burning vehicle, I have choices to buy a clean -- a newer car that's cleaner burning or to clean up my own pickup. But every cost of pollution is going to have to bear the cost of clean air. As opposed to the general public. We are trying to target the sources of pollution as opposed to the general taxpayer. So it is fair that the owner of a vehicle, the nchtion of that vehicle, pay for the cleanup of that vehicle. As it is, anyone that's operating heavy equipment, a lawn mower or any other source of pollutant, it's going to take that because it's the mass of that fleet, that fleet being all of those private cars, all of those heavy equipment pieces, all of those lawn mowers, that is the source of our pollution. And we are not going to solve this problem unless we get to that mass of pollution and it's every one of us.
>> I guess, this is my final question, but in the scheme of things, on that -- we looked at the area of the -- recommended as far as being -- in the non-attainment status here not too long ago, my concern, though, now is -- is looking at the whole regional approach would be I guess the five county region that's been playing a role in this, the aggressiveness of each county, hopefully being the same, hopefully implementing some of the same programs and I知 thinking that that's basically the direction we are going is -- especially with this -- with this inspection program and the way cars will have to be inspected in the future. And I do not know at this time if -- if all of the other counties, and I believe they are, going to join us and I think some of -- some are already doing some things, [indiscernible] is doing some things, Austin is doing some things, but aggressively doing some things that I think is necessary, because even though we live in Travis County, everybody is kind of playing a roll in cleaning up the air in this region. I知 wondering if everything is still on track with the other adjacent counties that are playing a roll in this environmental scheme of cleaning up our air.
>> I think we have certainly worked for two years to build that coalition of a regional coalition of governments.
>> right.
>> the counties, the cities. My fear, quite frankly, is that if the governor only designates Travis County and that is followed up by the administration in washington, then we will not be able to clean up our air. Travis County and the city of Austin alone cannot do this.
>> no.
>> and if it -- if that type of designation breaks the coalition where one county and one city are mandated to do it but everyone else gets to do it voluntarily, I think it stands to break up the coalition.
>> yeah. That's the direction that I was hoping it won't go in. But again we will have to wait and see on that. But anyway that was my final question. Thank you.
>> thank you very much, joe.
>> I think probably -- the second page, the future recommended actions, I just think that it's so important to take this very seriously and start doing a lot of these implementing some of these other recommendations. Those we won't get off the ground. And there is a price for not doing this at all. And I think the other -- that hasn't been mentioned is the health of citizens around here. Some of us have been sick for a month and that's way beyond what is the norm historically. That really causes me concern. I don't want to be sick anymore, y'all. And I really want to take this very seriously and it's -- let's look at some of these, I think they are all doable and I think we ought to consider the county staff at some point, whether it's during this budget process, so that we can, you know, really get serious about this and I don't want to wait until the feds tell me that I have to do this, that, the other.
>> to institutionlize this in Travis County -- I use the Travis County combined charities as an example only because it really was a team effort. Every department had a role. Perhaps forming a standing committee composed of representatives from all much the county departments, but I think to do that you have to have a plan, you have to have a very strong coordinator, and you have to have a tip from the leaders of these departments, the sheriff, judges, all of the department heads and say I am willing to dedicate some of my resources into making this happen. So we can create the framework for a clean air effort at Travis County. If we have the leadership I think we will be well on our way to starting to do as much as we cann county government.
>> we have a model, the combined charities model that we could at least --
>> even the employee health committee. That was very much --
>> we have that model.
>> I think the Commissioner Daugherty is not here, but I will do what he said the other day, which I think made a whole lot of sense. I think we are so used to hearing the word ozone action day there is no action involved whatsoever. People zone it out they don't do anything any different other than the folks that are taking the bus don't have to pay for the bus that day. But I don't think they see any really substantive blips in anything. So we have got to figure out some ways that this stuff is meaningful because we all get the blast phone message saying tomorrow is an ozone action day. Well, I hear the first three words, you know what? 76.
>> it just occurred to me. If you charge county employees $5 a parking space, an -- owe on ozone action day, I bet you get their attention. [laughter]
>> yeah. You want to be the hall monitor on this one, joe? [laughter]
>> extension 9383.
>> so I guess at the very least, we could maybe say let's form that -- that core group that -- that representatives from the county departments to -- to take some action on -- on addressing the -- addressing the recommendations that are on the last page of this memorandum. Let's get started.
>> we will have to give more attention to specific steps that need to be taken, including that committee.
>> [indiscernible] a little bit more.
>> okay.
>> specific action each department can take, so we can actually migrate this program to individual departments.
>> okay.
>> five bullets that y u have on second, on the last page. I would ask specific steps to be taken on each one of them.
>> right.
>> to get it done.
>> hey could look at these and start working on them.
>> I would hope that there would be kind of a pack, a wrap it all up, as we go through the budget process, which quite frankly is going to start in five weeks. We are going to start our first hearing. I would just have expectations of you all laying out very specific things about capital versus personal versus whatever, we can look at that during the budget process, which is just shortly upon us.
>> all right. That's fine.
>> do we need to be back on in two weeks?
>> is that okay, joe.
>> give me a little bit more time than that. Three weeks out. We have a busy agenda on the 22nd. At the last Tuesday in July -- how about the last Tuesday in July?
>> okay.
>> in [indiscernible] August and [indiscernible]?
>> we are already doing some of that stuff.
>> I don't know that it has to be perfect when you bring it back, I just think that it needs to be more specific.
>> all right. Whatever you want to do. Two weeks is fine.
>> I would provide a little bit more guidance.
>> are you talking about the 15th.
>> that's what I would say.
>> 15th, judge, you recommend.
>> that's my recommendation.
>> all right.
>> we will do the best we can by then. If -- [indiscernible] after that. But hopefully not necessarily bringing it back to the Commissioners court after the next visit.
>> okay.
Last Modified: Wednesday, July 1, 2003 5:52 AM