Copyright 1999 Gannett Company, Inc.
USA TODAY
December 21, 1999, Tuesday, FINAL EDITION
SECTION: MONEY; Pg. 1B
LENGTH: 676 words
HEADLINE:
Trucks will have to meet clean-air rule Standard will make vehicles, gas cost
more
BYLINE: Jayne O'Donnell
BODY:
Sport-utility vehicles, pickups and minivans
will have to meet
the same air-pollution standards as cars under an
Environmental
Protection Agency rule scheduled to be announced today by
President
Clinton.
By 2007, about 85% of cars and trucks will
have to meet the rule.
Automakers then will have just two more years to have
their largest
SUVs and pickups -- those that weigh between 6,000 and 8,500
pounds
-- meet the lower emissions levels. Car companies had asked the
EPA for at least four additional years to develop technology to
make
their beefiest trucks less polluting.
The EPA estimates that the rule will
increase the cost of a car
an average of about $ 100 and a truck about $
200. Automakers say
the price of the heaviest trucks could go up even more
because
they don't yet know what technology will be needed to meet the
rule.
The rule, which closely mirrors an EPA proposal released
in May,
also sets a standard for sulfur in
gasoline, which has an effect
on emissions. It's the first
national standard that regulates
autos and fuels together.
Automakers had fought hard to get oil companies to share the burden
of meeting the emissions requirements by producing
low-sulfur
gas. Lowering sulfur produces
cleaner exhaust and improves the
effectiveness of pollution-control devices,
automakers say.
Sulfur in fuel is expected to be
limited to an average of 30 parts
per million -- far lower than the average
300 ppm found in gas
but higher than the 5 ppm automakers were seeking.
While the average
is expected to be 30 ppm, it also is expected that no gas
could
be sold with a content higher than 80 ppm by 2007, when trucks
must meet the rules.
A similar rule restricting
sulfur already enacted in California
raised the price of
gas by a few cents. California recently announced
that fuel sold in that
state cannot have more than 15 ppm of sulfur
by 2003.
"We're just disappointed that we missed an opportunity for better
air quality because EPA didn't move far enough," says Gloria
Bergquist,
spokeswoman for the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers.
The EPA "headed in
the right direction, but stopped short of
attaining the maximum clean-air
benefit possible."
An EPA spokesman refused to comment.
Automakers also were apparently rebuffed in their attempt to get
a technological review in 2003 and '04 to track the progress they
and
oil companies were making on meeting the standards.
Emission
regulations pay off
Pollutant emissions have dropped
considerably since the federal
government started regulating trucks in 1974
and cars in 1968.
Grams per mile
Trucks
Pollutants 1974 1984 1994 1997-2003
Hydrocarbons (HC) 8.0 0.8 0.32[+1] 0.39[+1]
Carbon monoxide (CO) 102 10 4.4[+1] 5.0[+1]
Oxides of nitrogen (NOx) 3.6 2.3 0.7[+1] 1.1[+1]
Cars 1968 1978 1988 1997-2003
Hydrocarbons (HC) 4.1 1.5 0.41 0.25
Carbon monoxide (CO) 34 15 3.4 3.4
Oxides of nitrogen (NOx) 4.1 2.0 1.0 0.4
Source: Coalition for Vehicle Choice
1 -- Maximum
emissions. Number varies based on engine size and
truck weight.
LOAD-DATE: December 21, 1999
