The EPA Grants California Plans to Quickly Phase Down Diesel Trucks

PASADENA, Calif. – Today, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) granted California the ability to enforce standards that will quickly phase-down the sales of diesel trucks, thus creating healthier communities, especially where diesel truck traffic is clustered.  This decision will change the course of the nation’s transportation industry as we know it – for the better.

The public health impacts of diesel pollution range from childhood asthma and heart attacks to lung cancer and premature death. Moreover, these health impacts affect communities differently; the most vulnerable among us (low-income and communities of color) are hit the hardest because of their proximity to key freight corridors like ports and highways. Because internal combustion engines in medium- and heavy-duty trucks account for nearly a third of California’s nitrogen-oxide pollution, the EPA’s ruling is a critical next step toward improving air quality in the state. EPA’s actions will also help usher in a new era of clean trucks – powered by batteries, hydrogen fuel cells, and other cleaner fuels – bringing thousands of new jobs and additional manufacturing to the U.S.

“We applaud the EPA for granting the Advanced Clean Trucks (ACT) waiver and recognizing California’s long-standing authority to fight climate change and protect public health. Today’s action will spur the growth of the zero-emission truck & charger industry and create thousands of new jobs. CALSTART’s vast member network stands ready to work with policymakers and fleets in California and the other six states that have adopted ACT so far to ensure successful implementation,” said John Boesel, President, and CEO of CALSTART.

CALSTART is a nonprofit organization based in Pasadena, California, that has a 30-year history of working with some of the most committed national and international businesses, NGOs, academic institutions, and government agencies to develop clean transportation solutions. CALSTART is “changing transportation for good.”

About CALSTART 

A nonprofit consortium with offices in New York, Michigan, Colorado, California and central Europe and partners world-wide, CALSTART works with 300+ member company and agency innovators to build a prosperous, efficient, and clean high-tech transportation industry. We overcome barriers to modernization and the adoption of clean vehicles. CALSTART is changing transportation for good.