Not surprisingly, the trucking industry is fighting against formal adoption of the new federal rules. The report released last Thursday by the public-interest group enumerates a long list of reasons people should push for the stronger standards. By 2030, the stricter standards would prevent 106 premature deaths a year in Virginia. Between 1980 and 1994, the asthma rate rose 75 percent in the general population of the United States, according to a study by the Pew Environmental Health Commission. By 2020, asthma could effect 29 million Americans more than twice the current number if the proposed EPA standards aren't adopted.
Bad air hurts everyone, but particularly children and the elderly.
People get sick from bad air and miss time from work. That has an economic impact impossible to fully measure, of course, but it's a factor that affects not only individual workers but also the business community. Aside from urging the federal government to adopt the proposed EPA rules, the general public and trucking companies can take other steps to help clean up the air. People can tell local public transportation companies that they want buses that don't run on diesel fuel. Companies can make sure their trucks comply with existing standards.