“The locomotive rule has the power to change the course of history for Californians who have suffered from train pollution for far too long, and it is my hope that our federal regulators follow California’s lead,” said Yasmine Agelidis, a lawyer with environmental nonprofit Earthjustice, in a statement.ĭiesel exhaust is a health hazard. The rule is the most ambitious of its kind in the country.

Wayne Winegarden, a Pacific Research Institute senior fellow, said the rule would be expensive for rail companies, and increased costs will mean higher prices for many goods that move by rail. They could improve air quality near railyards and ports.īut some say it’s too soon for the locomotive standards. The standards would also reduce chemicals that contribute to smog. “It is time to kickstart the next step of transformation, with trains,” said Davina Hurt, a California Air Resources Board member. It would also ban locomotives in the state from idling longer than 30 minutes if they are equipped with an automatic shutoff. The rule will ban locomotive engines more than 23 years old by 2030 and increase the use of zero-emissions technology to transport freight from ports and throughout railyards. (AP) - California approved Thursday a first-in-the-nation, ambitious rule limiting rail pollution to aggressively cut greenhouse gas emissions in the state’s latest move to establish itself as a global leader in the fight against climate change.

The first law before they are hanged