Air Regulator Wants California Diesel Rule Suspended
December 3, 2009
A member of the California Air Resources Board (CARB) wants to suspend new diesel emissions rules for trucks and buses after learning that a researcher whose work contributed to the rules falsified his credentials.
The researcher, Hien Tran, compiled research on health effects of soot. Air regulators considered the report when adopting the landmark pollution standards in December 2008.
Tran had claimed to have a doctorate from the University of California, Berkeley.
But board chairwoman Mary Nichols says Tran admitted a few days before the vote that his degree was from Thornhill University, an online, unaccredited institution. He was demoted and suspended for 60 days without pay.
Board member John Telles is now calling for the rules to be set aside until the report is reviewed by independent researchers.
San Francisco Chronicle
