Contact: Sasha Tenenbaum, stenenbaum@momscleanairforce.org, (917) 887-0146
Washington, DC—Today, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Michael Regan announced historic rulemakings to address pollution from the transportation industry, a significant step forward in the transition to zero-emission vehicles. The Multi-Pollutant Emissions Standards for Model Years 2027 and Later Light-Duty and Medium-Duty Vehicles would address multi-pollutant emissions, including greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, for passenger cars and light trucks manufactured in model years 2027 through at least 2029. The Heavy-Duty Trucks Greenhouse Gas Rule would address pollution standards for trucks and other heavy-duty vehicles manufactured in model years 2027 through at least 2029. Both rules are part of the Biden Administration’s Clean Trucks Plan. In response to the announcement, Moms Clean Air Force Senior Legislative and Regulatory Policy Manager Melody Reis released the following statement:
“Moms Clean Air Force celebrates this historic step forward in cleaning up tailpipe emissions and moving towards a nation of zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs). Cars and trucks play a critical role in our lives and our economy, but the pollution they generate is toxic for our families and communities. Vehicle exhaust is a major contributor to climate-warming greenhouse gas emissions and has been linked to numerous health harms, like asthma, strokes, heart attacks, and cancer. Cleaning up transportation pollution and accelerating our transition to ZEVs can’t come quickly enough.
“Tailpipe pollution directly harms our health, damaging our lungs, hearts, and brains. Vehicle exhaust contains dangerous air pollutants like particle pollution (also known as soot) and nitrogen dioxide. Because of housing discrimination and other unjust policies, communities of color and lower-income communities make up a higher percentage of the population near our roads and highways, and are disproportionately burdened by unhealthy pollution from cars and trucks.
“The transportation sector is also our country’s largest source of climate pollution, accounting for nearly a third of US greenhouse gas emissions. The gasoline- and diesel-powered cars and trucks that drive essential goods across the country every day are also, quite literally, driving climate change. And climate change harms our health: it contributes to increased respiratory and cardiovascular illness; injuries and premature deaths related to extreme weather; changes in food security; increased risk of infectious diseases; and threats to our mental health. Children are especially vulnerable to many of the health impacts of climate change, as are older adults, communities of color, people with pre-existing chronic conditions, and lower-income communities.
“Creating cleaner vehicles is an opportunity we can’t miss to reduce health-harming pollution, address climate change, advance environmental justice, and create jobs. To say it plainly, clean transportation means thriving communities and healthier families. Moms Clean Air Force has long been advocating for stronger protections from transportation pollution, and we applaud EPA for taking this momentous step forward. Parents across the country want to see a rapid transition to zero-emitting cars and trucks, and we urgently need cleaner air for our children and our communities.”