This week, dozens of moms from across the country will testify before EPA at a hearing on proposed federal standards for greenhouse gas pollution from heavy-duty trucks.
The proposed standards are an important step in tackling the climate crisis, which is fueling extreme weather and making it harder to clean up air pollution. Strong safeguards are crucial in protecting the health of our children and communities—we must act urgently!
We’ve said it before: The transportation sector is the largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in the US. And despite making up less than 10% of the vehicles on the road, heavy-duty vehicles are responsible for an outsize share of this climate pollution.
Cleaner trucks cannot come soon enough.
I live near Washington, DC, and there’s no question that climate change is here. Four of the five hottest years on record have been in the last 11 years. And 2023 is on track to top them all—77% of days this year have seen temperatures warmer than average, often by 5 to 6 degrees.
Increased temperatures can lead to dangerous levels of ozone pollution, or smog, so it’s unsurprising that just last month, the DC Metro region received a failing grade from the American Lung Association based on the number of high ozone days in recent years.
- Ozone is linked to lung damage and respiratory problems.
- Children, whose little lungs are still growing, are among the most vulnerable to its harms.
When I look at the forecast in the morning and see an air quality alert—and we just had one recently—it’s hard not to feel anxiety about sending kids out to play in polluted air. Or anxiety about having to keep them indoors, which has its own health drawbacks.
The good news is the technology for zero-emissions vehicles exists. Zero emissions means zero climate pollution and zero air pollution coming out of tailpipes. That’s good for our climate and for our lungs.
And it’s especially good for those who live near highways and truck routes, often communities of color and low-income communities, who have been burdened for far too long with unhealthy air.
Heavy-duty trucks are driving climate change, but it doesn’t have to be this way. Join me and dozens of moms this week in urging EPA to set strong standards for truck pollution this year—and help put us on a path to a cleaner future.
TELL EPA: SET STRONG LIMITS ON CLIMATE POLLUTION FROM HEAVY-DUTY TRUCKS