EPA Rule Raising Heavy-Duty Vehicle Standards in Final Review Stage

On June 2, 2016, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) sent a proposed rule to the Executive Office of Management and Budget that would raise greenhouse gas and fuel efficiency standards for large and heavy-duty vehicles.  The proposed standards were first released last June and are now in their final stage of review before White House approval.  The proposed standards will run through 2027 if approved.

The standards receive their regulatory structure from a 2011 rule in which the EPA and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration raised emission and fuel efficiency standards for medium and heavy-duty vehicles made from 2014 to 2018.  However, the new proposed rule would not only apply to currently available technologies but to technologies under development or not yet widely deployed.

The standards incorporate test procedures that allow individual drivetrain and powertrain performance to be reflected during the vehicle certification process and dictate the use of an updated compliance simulation model.

The standards tighten restrictions on leakage of hydrofluorocarbons, which are commonly used as refrigerants in vehicle air-conditioning systems and can be strong greenhouse gases.  Additionally, the rule proposes increased nitrous oxide standards for heavy-duty engines.  

The proposed standards would apply to tractors and semitrailers, heavy-duty pickup trucks, vans, buses, garbage trucks and concrete mixers.  Final approval is expected in August.  It is estimated that the new standards could cut carbon dioxide emissions by 1 billion metric tons, reduce fuel costs by $170 billion and lower oil consumption by 1.8 billion barrels over the lifetime of the vehicles sold.