Friday April 30, 10:52 am Eastern Time
Clinton to announce emission rules Saturday-group
WASHINGTON, April 30 (Reuters) - President Bill Clinton will unveil new rules on
Saturday to cut the content of harmful sulfur in gasoline and to impose on trucks and sports
utility vehicles (SUVs) the same emission standards as on cars, an industry group said.
The American Petroleum Industry said on Friday that Clinton was scheduled to make the
announcement, which has been expected for several weeks, on Saturday. The White House
has not yetannounced the topic of Clinton's weekly radio address on Saturday, a possible
forum for the announcement.
A White House official said the proposal was under review by the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB),
and he could not confirm details or the timing of its release. ''That rule is under development at OMB and we expect to unveil it
shortly,'' he said. ''The idea is to strike a balance between cleaner fuels and cleaner cars.''
While the result of the proposal would be cleaner air, the rules could also increase the price of gasoline and of popular pickup
trucks and SUVs -- which now account for half of U.S. vehicle sales.
Under the rules, the sulfur in gasoline, which nationally averages 340 parts per million (PPM), would be reduced 30 PPM,
according to sources familiar with the proposal.
At the same time, pickup trucks and SUVs will have to reduce their emissions of nitrogen oxides -- a key ingredient in smog.
The biggest SUVs, like the Ford Expedition, will not have to fully comply with the new standards until 2009, sources said. |
