Today, The Road will refrain from further commentary on the FMC's latest maneuvering to delay clean air to bring you this shocking scoop: We actually agree with our zealous and frequent critics at the Long Beach Press-Telegram editorial board! (But of course not without a tinge of irony.)

Noting that those who oppose tougher air pollution regulations point to the high economic costs of enforcing them, this morning they cite a new study that put a staggering $28 billion price tag on the economic and health costs of living with polluted air in the region, concluding we can't afford not to meet compliance standards.

Totaling all the costs influenced by air pollution - premature deaths, new bronchitis cases, hospital admissions, asthma attacks, school absences, lost work days, respiratory problems in children and emergency room visits - researchers at the Institute for Economic and Environmental Studies at California State University, Fullerton, found that Southern Californians pay for breathing air that often exceeds federal standards for ozone and particulate matter. In the South Coast Air Basin the cost exceeds $1,250 per person annually. The number of annual deaths in Los Angeles County resulting from the prevalence of these air pollutants is 1,739, the report states. 

Of course, the ed-board pointed out, "another way to look at the problem is that if Los Angeles County by itself were to suddenly come into compliance with federal air pollution standards, the savings to society would exceed $12 billion annually."

Here's the ironic part. Had Long Beach not suddenly broken its original partnership with Los Angeles and jointly implemented the sustainable Clean Trucks Program (which the anti-union P-T editorial board has irrationally criticized because labor has joined environmentalists to support a green-growth policy), it would have generated over $4.2 billion for our region over the next five years, according to the 2007 report by the Los Angeles Alliance for a New Economy entitled "The Road to Shared Prosperity." This calculation looked at three things:

• First, affected communities would see a savings of $2.2 billion from the reduced health impacts associated with toxic diesel truck emissions.

• Second, we would see $225 million in savings from the public money currently spent on health care for uninsured drivers.

• Finally, we would see $1.8 billion from the increased driver compensation associated with employee status, and from a shift in drivers' tax burden

The benefits of combating poverty and pollution together would have reverberated throughout Long Beach. Overall, the city would have seen over $30 million in additional economic benefits every year.

That boon is sorely needed in this time of budget shortfalls, particularly since Long Beach voters refused to dig deeper in their own pockets in the absence of greater fiscal management on November 4. If any of our elected leaders are sighing "woulda, coulda, shoulda," this is a reminder that PTA moms, port driver dads, Cal State students, and Cabrillo High teachers are joining other Long Beach residents in crying "Yes We Can."