Issues: Energy

Cleaning Up Today's Dirty Diesels

Issue Papers, February 10, 2005

Stringent new federal standards for diesel fuel and emissions will provide significant health benefits. But these benefits will not be fully realized for 20 years unless effective programs are put in place to replace and retrofit today's fleets of dirty diesel vehicles. The most effective such programs will concentrate on urban areas, where people are exposed to more vehicle pollution, and on cleaning up the oldest, dirtiest vehicles first. This November 2004 NRDC issue paper details compelling arguments for instituting retrofit and replacement policies today and provides a roadmap for getting started.

Smoke Out: Three Measures for Cleaning Up Diesel Air Pollution in New York City

Issue Papers, April 20, 2005

This April 2005 NRDC paper outlines the current health threat posed by diesel-powered trucks, buses and construction equipment in New York City, and recommends three critical measures for how the city council, Bloomberg administration, MTA bus fleets, state legislature and Governor Pataki can clean up the city’s diesel pollution problem.

NRDC Strongly Supports the EPA's Proposal to Clean up Heavy, Nonroad Diesel Engines

Fact Sheet, August 13, 2003

The EPA's proposal for cleaning up heavy, nonroad diesel engines by reducing sulfur levels in diesel fuel could dramatically reduce health problems associated with particulate pollution.

Subtracting Sulfur: Reducing Diesel Sulfur Levels to Reduce Urban Pollution

Issue Papers, February 21, 2002

NRDC's Dump Dirty Diesels Campaign is calling on countries around the world to cut sulfur levels in diesel fuel to near zero by the end of the decade. Sulfur contributes to the ill effects of diesel's soot emissions -- effects that include elevated rates of asthma attacks, lung disease, heart disease, cancer and even premature death. At the same time, sulfur impairs emission-control devices that can remove most of the pollution from diesel cars, trucks and buses on the road today. This February 2002 report not only shows why cleaning up "dirty diesel" makes so much sense -- it also outlines how this can be achieved and the likely economic benefits of stripping sulfur from worldwide diesel supplies.

Testimony on Proposed Heavy-Duty Engine and Vehicle Standards and Highway Diesel Fuel Sulfur Control Requirements, Sept. 2000

Testimony, February 21, 2001

Presented before the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, Subcommittee on Clean Air, Wetlands, Private Property and Nuclear Safety, by Richard Kassel, NRDC senior attorney, September 2000.

Testimony on Proposed Heavy-Duty Engine and Vehicle Standards and Highway Diesel Fuel Sulfur Control Requirements, June 2000

Testimony, June 27, 2000

Presented before the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency by Richard Kassel, NRDC senior attorney, June 2000.

Diesel-Electric Hybrid Buses

Issue Papers, April 01, 1999

A paper addressing the technical and public health issues related to diesel-electric hybrid buses.

Green Diesel: Fact or Fiction?

Fact Sheet, March 08, 2002

This March 2002 analysis separates fact from fiction on so-called "green" diesel trucks and buses. While two new studies appear to show that "green" diesel is as clean or even cleaner than compressed natural gas, the studies don't offer a true apples-to-apples comparison. The truth is that today's exhaust-control technology still doesn't eliminate all the air pollution and ill effects of diesel combustion, and it hasn't yet been tested under real world conditions.

last revised 4/30/2005