EPA’s reevaluation of Clean Trucks Plan draws support from freight industry stakeholders

An action taken by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) yesterday, regarding the Biden Administration’s “Clean Trucks Plan,” addressing Greenhouse Gas (GhG) emissions standards for heavy-duty vehicles was largely applauded by freight transportation concerns.

The EPA said it is reevaluating parts of the “Clean Trucks Plan” it views are problematic, with sharp focus on the 2022 Heavy-Duty Nitrous Oxide (NOx) rule, which it noted “results in significant costs that will make the products our trucks deliver, like food and other household items, more expensive.”

The “Clean Trucks Plan” was formally rolled out by the EPA in May 2022 and comprised of various regulations focused on reducing air pollution from both heavy-duty trucks and buses, with a sharp focus on lowering Nox and particulate matter emissions. A key focus of the plan was to reduce the amount of pollution produced by trucks, especially those using diesel fuel, and facilitate the transition to cleaner technologies, including electric trucks.

As previously reported, heavy-duty trucks are the largest contributor—up to 32%—of all mobile source emissions. The EPA previously stated that these pollutants are linked to respiratory or cardiovascular problems and other adverse health effects that lead to increased medication use, hospital admissions, emergency department visits and premature deaths.

The American Trucking Associations (ATA) praised the EPA’s decision to review the NOx standard.

“GHG3 (Phase 3 Greenhouse Gas Emissions) in its current form is unachievable given the state of battery-electric technology and the sheer lack of charging infrastructure,” said ATA President & CEO Chris Spear. “This rule has been an albatross for the trucking industry, threatening to reduce equipment availability, increase costs for businesses and consumers, and cause major supply chain disruptions. It is critically important that the federal government set realistic standards with achievable targets and timelines. Prior to the imposition of GHG3, EPA used a collaborate process that served the agency and the trucking industry well and allowed us to make monumental progress to reduce emissions. As a result, sixty trucks today emit the same amount as one truck manufactured in 1988.”  

Spear added that the trucking industry welcomes the resumption of a productive partnership with EPA, while noting that the development of a new national rule will prevent states like California from attempting to make what he called an end run around the administration, and result in a patchwork of impossible mandates that could negatively impact the economy.  

“ATA looks forward to working with the Trump Administration to develop realistic, technology-neutral federal emissions standards that will benefit our environment, preserve and create jobs, and set our industry and supply chain up for success,” he added.

The Washington, D.C.-based Clean Freight Coalition (CFC), an alliance comprised of transportation stakeholders committed to a clean energy future for America’s commercial vehicle industry, also applauded this development.

CFC Executive Director Jim Mullen observed that the trucking industry has made significant improvements on tailpipe emissions over the last several decades, adding that CFC will work with the Administration on reasonable and achievable solutions that continue to deliver cleaner commercial vehicles moving forward. 

“We will also continue to advocate for a national regulatory framework that is technology neutral and achieves the greatest benefit for the environment without unnecessarily burdening the industry, the economy, and all consumers of goods in our country,” said Mullen.

And the Truckload Carriers Association (TCA) also threw its support behind the EPA, noting how it has worked hard to make sure that federal emissions policies reflect real-world operational and economic considerations.

The organization cited a July 2024 letter to the EPA by Senator Mike Crapo (R-ID) and Rep. Rep. Randy Feenstra (R-IA), which called on former EPA Administrator Michael Regan to change course on the “Greenhouse Gas Emissions Standards for Heavy-Duty Vehicles-Phase 3, which was published on April 22, 2023, labeling it a de facto electric mandate on trucks, tractors, buses, and semis.

In the letter they explained that this final rule would disrupt the heavy-duty truck industry by forcing the broad adoption of heavy-duty zero emission vehicles on an extremely aggressive timeline, despite these vehicles currently being less than 1% of sales.

“According to a recent study, it would cost nearly $1 trillion in infrastructure investment alone to fully electrify the U.S. commercial fleet, which does not include the expense of purchasing new semis,” they wrote. “Additionally, the cost for an electric semi-truck averages over $400,000 while a comparable diesel Class 8 truck costs around $180,000—meaning electric trucks cost an average of 122% more than a normal semi.”

Kevin Smith, President and CEO of Sustainable Supply Chain Consulting, and former SVP Supply Chain & Logistics and Corporate Sustainability Officer, for CVS Caremark, told LM that this move by the EPA makes perfect sense in an industry that has tried hard, and succeeded, in improving carbon emissions and creating efficiencies.

“The fact is that the infrastructure to support the electric truck movement is simply not there and realistically would still be a few years away, at best,” he said. “This is a good common sense move that will have positive effects for consumers and shippers.”

What happens from here remains to be seen. But it is clear that this action by the EPA has a considerable amount of industry support. At a time of uncertainty, especially within the supply chain, this could be viewed as a move that could provide the trucking industry, as well as the supply chain at large, with what it views as a need for more practicable and achievable emissions standards, as the TCA indicated.