EPA proposes more smog-contributing ethanol in summer gasoline

EPA Acting Administrator Andrew WheelerEthanol is known as an alternative fuel, and is even renewable. But that doesn't always make it clean. The Environmental Protection Agency, after releasing proposals to water down emissions and fuel economy standards for cars, attack states' plans to bolster EV sales, and reduce emissions standards for powerplants to charge EVs, has now released a...

Diesel lawsuit proceeds against Mercedes-Benz

2014 Mercedes-Benz E250 BlueTec 4MaticWhile Volkswagen has reached a historic settlement and had to buy back hundreds of thousands of its diesel cars in the U.S., it isn’t the only automaker to be investigated for cheating on diesel emissions. Fiat Chrysler recently agreed to recall its Ram and Jeep EcoDiesels and pay owners for misleading advertising claims. A third case...

EPA adds climate skeptic to science board

EPA Acting Administrator Andrew WheelerScience at the EPA has been a topic of much debate, and a lot of turmoil since President Trump took office. In that way, the addition of eight new members to the agency's much discussed Science Advisory Board isn't surprising. What may more surprising to some is the makeup of the new members announced Thursday. Most of the new members are...

EPA enforcement efforts slide 85 percent under Trump administration

Smokestacks pollution air qualityNot only do polluters have lower standards to meet under the Trump administration, they may not really have to meet those standards at all. That's the conclusion of a new study, published by the Washington Post, that shows enforcement activity has fallen drastically in the past two years since President Trump took office. The study, conducted by a...

Oil industry funding supports campaign to roll back fuel-economy rules

Exhaust emissions from tailpipe [photo: Simone Ramella, 2005, used under Creative Commons 2.0]A new investigative report by the New York Times has revealed the puppeteer pulling the strings in the Trump administration's efforts to undo fuel-economy and emissions improvements: no surprise, the oil industry. Backed by America's largest refiners and organizations tied to or funded by the Koch brothers, an underground network coordinated a...

EPA announces tighter smog regulations on heavy trucks

EPA Acting Administrator Andrew WheelerThe EPA has loosened or eliminated a lot of regulations since President Trump took office, but last week the agency announced it would tighten regulations on emissions of nitrogen oxides from heavy trucks such as semis. The EPA notes that smog-forming NOx emissions from heavy trucks fell 40 percent between 2007 and 2017 after the agency last...

EPA dissolves boards of pollution scientists

Smokestacks pollution air qualityThe EPA has dismissed two panels of outside scientists that advised the agency on particulate matter and ground-level ozone, which have been linked to smog and respiratory problems. Under acting administrator Andrew Wheeler, a former coal-industry lobbyist, analyzing those pollutants will be left to the EPA's internal Clean Air Scientific Advisory...

EPA plans to roll back emissions standards on power plants

Smokestacks pollution air qualityAfter wiping out plans to continue boosting fuel economy standards earlier this month, the EPA on Tuesday proposed rolling back emissions standards on electric power plants. The new proposed rule, which the EPA calls the "Affordable Clean Energy" rule, would eliminate Obama-era standards that would have required power plants to reduce carbon...