WASHINGTON - The Clinton administration said Thursday it would curb the sooty particles spewed from diesel-powered trucks by requiring cleaner fuel, an action US refiners plan to fight because of the cost and potential for supply shortages.
The new rules, which take effect in 2006, are aimed at cleaning up the air for children, the elderly and others with asthma and respiratory ailments.
President Bill Clinton said the rules capped off a series of actions by his administration to tighten pollution restrictions on tailpipe emissions and sport utility vehicles.
"We are adopting strong measures to dramatically reduce unhealthy and unsightly emissions from trucks and buses powered by diesel fuel," Clinton said in a statement. "They ensure that by the end of the decade, every new car, truck and sport utility vehicle in America will be up to 95 percent cleaner than those on the road today."
The stricter rules prepared by the Environmental Protection Agency have been vigorously opposed by US oil refiners, who have said they will ask Congress to amend the rules and delay the effective date until 2008.
Under the new restrictions, American refiners will have to reduce sulfur in diesel fuel to 15 parts per million by 2006, compared to a current level of 500 parts per million.
Oil groups like the American Petroleum Institute warn the rules will mean higher diesel prices and fewer supplies.
OIL INDUSTRY TO CHALLENGE RULES
Costs to make the cleaner fuel mean the pump price of diesel fuel could jump by 15 cents a gallon, much higher than the EPA's estimate of 5 cents, industry officials said. And some refiners are likely to simply stop making diesel instead of paying to upgrade facilities - a move which could take as much as 320,000 barrels per day of diesel out of the market.
Bob Slaughter, general counsel for the National Petrochemical and Refiners Association, said his group will also ask the incoming Republican administration of President-elect George W. Bush to raise the allowable diesel sulfur level to around 50 parts per million.
"Clearly, they have a right to take a second look at it," Slaughter said. Raising the sulfur levels to 50 parts per million would save refiners billions of dollars in upgrading their facilities, he said.
Under the new EPA rules, vehicle manufacturers will need to retool diesel engines for heavy-duty trucks and buses in order to cut emissions by more than 90 percent by 2007.
Bush, a former Texas oilman, was expected to nominate New Jersey Gov. Christine Todd Whitman for the post of EPA administrator. While she will be best remembered by environmentalists for her initiative to preserve a million acres of open space in New Jersey, critics say the state's Department of Environmental Protection also saw its budget slashed from $200 million to $168 million in her first term.
GREEN GROUPS SAY STRICT RULES NEEDED
Green groups praised the rules as a key step in cleaning up the air for those with asthma, bronchitis and other breathing ailments. Diesel engines have been blamed for spewing out 100 times more sooty particles than comparable gasoline engines.
But environmentalists questioned whether the new Bush administration would support the new pollution rules.
"The real question now is whether the new administration will defend this bold cleanup plan against expected oil industry-led attacks in Congress and in the courts," said Frank O'Donnell, director of the Clean Air Trust.
The World Health Organization and the California state environmental protection agency have determined diesel exhaust and particulates may cause cancer. Scientists say the nitrogen oxide emissions also contribute to smog and acid rain.
"The decision to cut diesel exhaust is perhaps this administration's biggest improvement in air quality safeguards, in terms of the potential for saving lives," said Carl Pope, director of the Sierra Club. "Children with asthma will be able to spend more time outdoors. The elderly and people with respiratory problems will be able to breathe easier."
The new rules are the latest in a series of tougher air pollution measures spearheaded by EPA Administrator Carol Browner during her eight years as head of the agency.
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