The Diesel Technology Forum (DTF) praises the United States Environmental Protection Agency for its Fifth Report to Congress highlighting the accomplishments of the Diesel Emissions Reduction Act Program (DERA). “EPA’s Fifth Report to Congress confirms the enduring value of the Diesel Emissions Reduction Act in delivering substantial clean air and climate benefits to communities around the country, and the continuing need. As the agency stated in the report, ‘DERA funding has accelerated upgrades and replacements for diesel vehicles and equipment, improving the public and private diesel fleets that are critical to the economy’,” says DTF’s Executive Director Allen Schaeffer.
Between 2008 to 2018, approximately $801 million in funding was appropriated to DERA to replace or retrofit more than 73,700 engines or vehicles. According to EPA’s calculations of health benefits, diesel emissions reduction projects are cost-effective, with monetized health benefits estimated to exceed federal funding by a factor of 10. EPA estimates that reducing these harmful pollutants will lead to about $8 billion in monetized health benefits, according to the report.
The new generation of advanced diesel technology achieves near zero emission levels and has been available since 2010 for heavy duty trucks; since 2014 off road engines and equipment. DERA is the leading program that addresses the opportunity to modernize and upgrade or replace the previous older generation of diesel engines that have higher emissions and are expected to continue in service for many years to come.
Recent research has shown the distinct benefits of accelerating the turnover of the trucking fleet to newer diesel technology, finding that in 10 northeastern states, along with using renewable biodiesel fuels 3X the reductions in greenhouse gases and other emissions at 25% of the cost of a full electrification strategy. “Thanks to Senator Carper’s leadership and the bipartisan work in both the House and Senate, DERA has proven to be a consistently highly effective program. It has returned $10 in benefits for every dollar invested. In addition, the program helped reduced emissions of oxides of nitrogen (NOx) by 491,000 tons and 5.8 million tons of carbon dioxide from 2008 to 2018,” says Schaeffer.
For more information, visit www.dieselforum.org.