U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently announced tougher emission standards for heavy-duty truck and engine makers.
In a Dec. 20 news release, EPA said it finalized "the strongest-ever national clean air standards" with an aim toward cutting smog- and soot-forming emissions from heavy-duty trucks, starting with the 2027 model year. EPA's new clean air standards – the first update for heavy duty truck manufacturers in more than 20 years – are more than 80% stronger than present standards.
"EPA is taking significant action to protect public health, especially the health of 72 million people living near truck freight routes in America, including our most vulnerable populations in historically overburdened communities," EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan said in the release. "But we’re not stopping there. This is just the first action under EPA's Clean Trucks Plan to pave the way toward a zero-emission future."
The tougher rules are part of President Joe Biden's green agenda, Regan said.
"These rigorous standards, coupled with historic investments from the Inflation Reduction Act and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, will accelerate President Biden's ambitious agenda to overhaul the nation's trucking fleet, deliver cleaner air and protect people and the planet," he said, according to the release.
The tougher rules are "the latest step" toward EPA's Clean Trucks Plan, an effort to move the nation away from a pollution-emitting heavy-duty trucking fleet toward more low-carbon and electric vehicle technologies, the release reported.
"Additionally, historic investments from President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act and Bipartisan Infrastructure Law are accelerating innovation in zero-emissions truck technology, expanding access to clean school and transit buses and training workers to install and maintain charging infrastructure," the news release said.
By 2045, the tougher rules will reduce smog and soot from new heavy-duty trucks enough to, among other things, prevent 2,900 premature deaths, 6,700 hospital admissions and emergency department visits, 18,000 cases of childhood asthma and 3.1 million cases of asthma symptoms and allergic rhinitis symptoms. By that date, EPA expects the tougher rules to result in 78,000 fewer lost days of work, 1.1 million fewer lost school days for children and $29 billion in annual net benefits, according to the news release.
