A diverse coalition of state and local clean-air regulators, industry, health and environmental organizations -- including trucking groups -- are urging U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Christine Todd Whitman to protect the EPA's diesel cleanup plan from delay tactics.

In a letter signed by the California Trucking Association and International Truck and Engine Corp., as well as the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers and American Lung Association, among others, the groups voice support for the EPA rule to clean up diesel trucks and diesel fuel. The groups ask Whitman to resist the industry's call for an external review of the rule by the National Academy of Sciences and thank her for her recent decision to move forward.
The letter also highlights the extensive process that led up to the new rule and the enormous public health and environmental benefits provided by the aggressive new emissions standards and low cap on sulfur in diesel fuel. The letter suggests that the NAS review could penalize companies that already have made significant investments to comply with the rule and "could undermine the rule by causing delays in implementing its key provisions, particularly regarding the clean fuel program." It goes on to say that, "Additional review would create a climate of unnecessary uncertainty that could lead refiners to postpone investments in needed technology upgrades and other refinery improvements. The uncertainty also could cause industry to postpone technology research and development plans."
According to EPA and engine manufacturers, sulfur in diesel fuel must be lowered to enable modern pollution control technology to be effective on trucks and buses. EPA will require a 97-percent reduction in the sulfur content of highway diesel fuel from its current level of 500 to 15 parts per million.
Whitman gave her agency the go-ahead late last month to move forward with the emissions rules, but said she would ask an independent advisory board to examine technology trends and determine how the rule could affect diesel supplies.
"The Bush Administration determined that this action not be delayed in order to protect public health and the environment," Whitman said in announcing the decision, adding a pledge to work to ensure that diesel trucks and buses remain a viable part of the nation's economy.