Seaport Truck Air Cleanup Southeast, or STACS, is a voluntary truck replacement program that provides truck owners who are frequent port users a financial incentive to replace pre-1994 model trucks with 2004 or newer models.
Eligible truck owners can get a $5,000 incentive, plus the scrap value of their pre-1994 truck, to use toward the purchase of a newer, cleaner truck.
The incentive for the program is funded by the SCPA, along with the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) through an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) grant.
This is the first such truck replacement program in the region.
Importantly, the program will help make upgraded equipment attainable and financially viable for all truck owners, both companies and independent owner-operators.
“Trucks are the backbone of any port, so our goal is to help drivers and truck owners purchase newer and more efficient rigs,” said Jim Newsome. “Newer trucks can reduce operating and maintenance costs, while also reducing emissions. It’s a practical solution for improving air quality and enhancing the flow of commerce.”
“This is a great extension of DHEC’s air partnership with the Ports Authority, which began in 2007,” said Myra C. Reece, chief of DHEC’s bureau of air quality. “Thanks to funding from the EPA under a State Clean Diesel Grant, DHEC is able to support this program that will reduce emissions and improve air quality.”
According to a recent truck survey, about two percent of the trucks that frequent the port are 1993 or older model years. Based on EPA estimates, moving from 1993 or older trucks to 2004 or newer trucks will reduce emissions by about 60 percent. In addition, newer equipment uses less fuel, which reduces operating costs.
While Charleston’s program is the first to launch in the region, the SCPA is working with the Coalition for Responsible Transportation (CRT, http://www.responsibletrans.org) and the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF, http://www.edf.org) on developing a regional truck program that would cover ports across the Southeast.
"The SCPA's significant investment in the first port-sponsored dirty truck retirement program in the Southeastern U.S. further illustrates its longstanding commitment to improving the air quality in its port communities," said James Jack, executive director of CRT. "We commend the SCPA for their leadership in the deployment of clean port trucks, and hope that this program will serve as a template for other ports in the region as they too seek to clean up their drayage truck fleets."
“This program offers great incentives for independent owner-operators and trucking companies to replace their older drayage trucks with cleaner, less polluting models,” said Elena Craft, Health Scientist with EDF. “Cleaner air will reduce the region’s risk for asthma attacks, heart and lung disease, and even death.”
The program will be administered by Cascade Sierra Solutions, which has managed similar programs in other ports on the West Coast. Cascade Sierra Solutions’ local office is at the SCPA’s Columbus Street Terminal.
The STACS program is part of the SCPA’s Pledge for Growth environmental program that has already helped fund $5 million in retrofits, upgrades and replacements to trucks, tugs and other port equipment.
