California regulators voted on Friday to be a leader in mitigating national tailpipe pollution by banning the sale of new diesel big rigs by 2036 and mandating all trucks to be zero-emissions by 2042.

According to CNBC, the Advanced Clean Fleets rule, which mandates new commercial trucks, such as garbage trucks, delivery trucks, and other medium and heavy-duty vehicles, to be electric, was unanimously approved by the California Air Resources Board.

The rule's backers argued that it would reduce the negative impacts of climate change on vulnerable populations by protecting them from the health risks posed by filthy air.

This ruling was expected to deliver some $26.5 billion in public health benefits in avoiding health impacts and deaths because of diesel pollution. 

According to the California Air Resources Board, heavy-duty trucks are responsible for about a third of the state's nitrogen oxide and over a quarter of its fine particle pollution from diesel fuel.

The Union of Concerned Scientists, a non-profit organization, reported that medium and heavy-duty trucks, which make up only 10% of all vehicles on U.S. roads, are responsible for 25% of greenhouse gas emissions from transportation.

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Trucking Industry Issued Warning Following California Diesel Truck Ban

Some in the trucking industry are worried that the new measure will ultimately increase the price of trucked goods, affecting consumers, Fortune reported.

The measure.has been deemed "unrealistic" by the American Trucking Association, which is concerned about the high cost of suddenly shifting to zero-emission vehicles.

The group also said that vehicle-charging infrastructure is not yet equipped or prepared for the transition.

"As it becomes clear that California's rhetoric is not being matched by technology, we hope the Board will reverse course and allow trucking companies the freedom to choose the clean technologies that work best for their operations," it noted.

The group also claimed that truck emissions had decreased significantly over the past few decades. However, state regulators noted that over a hundred different types of emission-free trucks are commercially accessible in North America, and more than a hundred others are also in the works.

Based on the rule passed on Friday and prior electric truck restrictions enacted by the state, California officials expect over 1.6 million zero-emission medium- and heavy-duty trucks to operate in the state by 2048.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) noted that the largest share of greenhouse gas emissions nationwide yearly comes from the transportation sector.

California Diesel Truck Ban

Medium and heavy-duty trucks, or those weighing over 10,000 pounds, are subject to the regulations. The San Francisco Chronicle reported that state and local governments must purchase only emission-free trucks by 2027.

Transportation trucks carrying cargo from ocean ports must have zero-emission technology by 2035 to access port and railyard facilities.

Fleet trucks owned by the federal government and businesses with $50 million yearly revenue or more than 50 vehicles on the road must be zero-emissions by 2042.

The new rules do not mandate state and municipal government fleets to phase out the usage of their current vehicles. Companies with yearly revenues of less than $50 million and a vehicle fleet size of less than 50 are not required to comply with the regulations.

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Written by: Bert Hoover

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