The California Air Resources Board (CARB) has approved a new policy to eliminate diesel fuel from trucks, requiring manufacturers of this type of vehicle to sell (and more each year) zero-emission vehicles from 2024.
The policy, according to State Governor Gavin Newsom, is an important step towards reducing emissions and improving public health in low-income communities near busy road corridors and ports. Environmentalists believe the requirement, which extends to medium and large trucks weighing 8,500 pounds or more, will result in an estimated 300,000 zero-emission trucks on the state’s roads by 2035. Implementation is expected to begin in 2024 and will initially require manufacturers to produce 5-9 percent of zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs), depending on class, with an increase to 30-50 percent of such vehicles by 2030. All trucks are expected to be ZEV by 2045.