Include health benefits of new fuel standards.

A New York Times article explains the new U.S. diesel fuel economy standards for heavy vehicles and describes how incorporating hybrid diesel-electric engines and idling controls will reduce fuel use. Though the economic and environmental implications of tougher fuel standards are mentioned, the estimated reduction in air pollutants and their impact on health are conspicuously absent.

Diesel exhaust is a major contributor to outdoor air pollution. Diesel fuel combustion produces gases and soot particles, which have significant health effects in people.

Diesel exhaust is comprised of thousands of chemicals, including carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitric oxide, elemental carbon, metals and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). The exhaust is also considered a likely carcinogen by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Diesel fuel emits very small particles – between 1/30 and 1/700 the diameter of a human hair. After inhaling, they can lodge deep in the lungs. Fine particles are associated with increased deaths and hospitalizations from lung diseases, such as asthma ands pneumonia, as well as heart attacks.

As the New York Times article explains, the proposed standards will apply to tractor-trailers, buses, heavy pickup trucks, cement mixers and other vehicles that are primarily powered by diesel fuel. The new standards will result in decreased fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. But, to fully appreciate the advantage of these new standards, the benefits to human health should be mentioned in the article.