In December this year, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced its new emissions rules that will take effect for cars and light trucks under model years 2023 through 2026. Earlier this week, the EPA also proposed new rules for heavy-duty trucks which could require up to 60 percent cut in the NOx emissions by 2045.
The heavy-duty truck industry is not embracing electrification at the same pace as the automotive industry is doing it. There are already a number of advanced developments for electric and hydrogen trucks, though nothing is actually close to mass production. This basically means the industry will continue to rely on combustion power for the foreseeable future and the EPA wants to set new rules outlining the way this sector should evolve in the next two decades.
"These new standards will drastically cut dangerous pollution by harnessing recent advancements in vehicle technologies from across the trucking industry as it advances toward a zero-emissions transportation future," EPA Administrator Michael Regan said in a statement.
According to estimates by the agency, the new rules, aimed at cutting nitrogen oxide emissions between 47 and 60 percent by 2045, would dramatically improve the air quality in the United States. This could save at least 2,100 lives and result in 3.1 million fewer cases of asthma symptoms and other air pollution-related health issues.
The EPA’s new rules are expected to take effect from 2027. Among the regulations, the agency’s proposal wants to keep the engine’s emission-control system fully operating for a longer period of time. Two options are being discussed with the first seeing 2027 do 2030 engines receive a 7-year/450,000-mile warranty, followed by a 10-year/600,000-mile warranty from 2031 onwards. The second option is slightly less aggressive - a 5-year/350,000-miles warranty.
