On Friday, the US government announced it was in the final stages of implementing more stringent tailpipe emissions standards for heavy-duty vehicles such as semi-trucks and buses. However, these revised regulations are not as stringent as initially proposed in 2023.
According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the new rules, which will apply to vehicles manufactured between 2027 and 2032, are expected to prevent 1 billion tons of greenhouse gas emissions by 2055.
Additionally, they are projected to deliver $13 billion in annualized net benefits to society. This contrasts with the EPA’s previous proposal, which aimed to prevent 1.8 billion tons of emissions.
Also read: EU passes truck emissions law despite German resistance
The updated standards encompass a range of vehicles, including delivery trucks, garbage trucks, public utility trucks, transit shuttles, school buses, and tractor-trailer trucks.
According to the EPA, the final standards introduce tighter requirements more gradually and postpone the implementation of new regulations for day cab tractors and certain heavy-duty vocational vehicles.
Heavy-duty vehicles constitute a significant portion of greenhouse gas emissions within the transportation sector, contributing to 25% of the total emissions. This sector, in turn, comprises 29% of all greenhouse gas emissions in the United States.
The EPA said the standards “are technology-neutral and performance-based, allowing each manufacturer to choose what set of emissions control technologies is best suited for them and the needs of their customers.”
Abigail Dillen, president of the Earthjustice environmental group, said Friday, “the EPA did not go far enough to protect communities from dangerous health impacts linked to heavy-duty truck pollution” and added, “truck manufacturers have pushed EPA to slow-walk this change.”
