EPA head: New carbon controls on trucks, buses and vans 'win for planet'

The Obama administration on Monday continued its push to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles, proposing the first-ever emissions limits for medium- and heavy-duty trucks and buses. The new rule proposes separate performance standards for three categories of vehicles: combination tractors, heavy-duty pickups and vans, and vocational vehicles. 

For long-haul combination tractors, the standards would require a 20-percent reduction in carbon dioxide emissions and fuel consumption by the 2018 model year.

 For heavy-duty pickup trucks and vans, the standards would differ by fuel type. The rule is estimated to achieve a 10-percent reduction for gasoline vehicles and 15 percent for diesel vehicles. For delivery trucks and other vocational vehicles, up to a 10-percent reduction in fuel consumption and CO2 emissions is required by model year 2018...more