Environmental Defense Praises Proposal To Curb Air Pollution From Diesel

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is expected to announce today a clean air initiative that would have dramatic public health and environmental benefits in communities across the country by slashing harmful pollution from large diesel trucks and buses. The proposal is expected to have two core components: (1) tightening emissions standards for these vehicles beginning in model year 2007, and (2) requiring cleaner diesel fuel beginning in mid-2006. It appears the Agency will phase in some of the emission reductions over a multi-year period from 2007-2010.

“Most of us have experienced the noxious exhaust from large diesel trucks and buses,” said Environmental Defense senior attorney Vickie Patton. “The dirty exhaust from these vehicles is irrefutable evidence that they haven’t had to do their share in cleaning up air pollution. If finalized, EPA’s proposal would clean up this pollution and produce tremendous clean air benefits in communities across the country. But we want to be sure that EPA will require these important pollution control measures to take effect before today’s toddlers become teenagers.”

Clean Air Benefits. This year alone large diesel trucks and buses are projected to emit about 2.2 million tons of oxides of nitrogen (NOx), a key ingredient of smog. They also are estimated to emit about 130,000 tons of inhalable particulates this year. Several organizations including the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, the World Health Organization, and the California EPA have determined that diesel exhaust or the particulates in the exhaust are a potential or probable human carcinogen. The Department of Health and Human Service’s National Toxicology Program recently issued its Report on Carcinogens (9th edition) in which it classified diesel exhaust particulates as “reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen.”

Cleaner Highway Diesel Fuel a Technology Enabler. Cleaner highway diesel fuel that is low in sulfur content is a critical ingredient of EPA’s proposed emission standards. EPA’s proposal is expected to limit the sulfur levels in highway diesel fuel to 15 parts per million. Under current law, the allowable sulfur content for highway diesel fuel is 500 parts per million. High sulfur levels can seriously impair the new pollution control devices necessary to remove pollutants from the diesel exhaust stream at high control efficiencies.