LOS ANGELES (Legal Newsline) - California Attorney General Kamala Harris says cargo terminals at the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles will have to reduce their diesel emissions.

Harris' settled her lawsuit Monday, only two months after filing a lawsuit that alleged the terminals were violating Proposition 65 by exposing residents to high levels of diesel exhaust without warning.

"This settlement will speed the requirements for port terminals to reduce diesel emissions," Harris said. "This is vitally important because expanding port traffic leads nearby residents to be exposed to polluted air and increased risk of cancer and other diseases."

The settlement requires terminals to:

-Implement a warning program using newspaper ads, bus shelter signs and the Internet;

-Undertake projects valued at $1 million per terminal to reduce diesel emissions; and

-Pay the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles for projects to lower diesel emissions from trucks, tractors and trains.

Harris says the terminals at the ports that cause the largest diesel exposures are APM Terminals Pacific, Eagle Marine Services, International Transportation Service, SSA Terminal, Pacific Maritime Services, Trapac, West Basin Container Terminal and Yusen Terminals.

From Legal Newsline: Reach John O'Brien by e-mail at jobrienwv@gmail.com.