Obama’s new rule to cut truck emissions

US President Obama unveiled a new benchmark in his climate policy which is expected to make US trucks produce 10 per cent less carbon dioxide and consume 10 per cent less fuel within the next 10 years.

According to the Environment Protection, more than one billion tonnes of CO2 emissions and two billion barrels of oil use will be cut thanks to the new rule.

According to an analysis by the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT), US heavy duty vehicles are expected to emit 16 per cent less CO2 than European ones.

Gina McCarthy, the EPA’s administrator, said: “It is very clear that we are going to be moving out well ahead of any other country in the development of these standards. We will be driving these technologies and as a result we will benefit from them more than any other country.”

Trucks are responsible for 22 per cent of US oils transport demand, even if they represent only 4 per cent of road traffic.

According to the EPA, the new rule will require trucks made in 2027 to be 25 per cent more carbon efficient than the models built in 2018, saving $170bn in fuel costs and creating a $230bn net benefit to society.

The emissions cut would be equal to the greenhouse gases associated with the electricity and power use from all US residences for one year, McCarthy said.

The rule, even if a “significant milestone”, according to Anthony Foxx, the US transport secretary, will most likely not be enough to enable the 54.5 miles a gallon fuel savings initially promised by Obama, because of the expected boom in sales of trucks and sports-utility vehicles triggered by cheap gasoline.

The law will be progressively implemented with three major steps in 2021, 2024, and 2027.

One European car industry source told the Guardian: “This announcement is obviously good news for the climate and for the INDC commitments made by the world’s states in Paris. But it is important for car manufacturers that – as well as a framework and visibility – we are given the time to implement [the rule].”

In Europe, heavy goods vehicles account for more than aviation or international shipping – 6 per cent of European greenhouse gas emissions. The new US law could represent a blueprint for the EU to follow.