CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: First, the big rigs on the road, and improving the air you breathe. Sitting in traffic behind an 18 wheeler, you might wonder about those clouds of diesel pouring from the exhaust pipes. The government is concerned, and today the Environmental Protection Agency will propose a crackdown on pollution from heavy trucks and buses. In Washington, the new regulations have been the subject of intense lobbying for weeks. White House correspondent Kelly Wallace on the road ahead for these new rules. Good morning, Kelly.</s>KELLY WALLACE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, good morning, Carol. As you said, the Environmental Protection Agency will announce today new federal rules that officials say amount to the most sweeping changes in the agency's regulation of the fuel of diesel trucks and buses. The goal? Removing smog and other chemicals in the air that have been linked to such diseases as cancer and asthma. Here's a glimpse of the new proposal. Number one, it would eliminate exhaust pipe pollution by more than 95 percent. The way this would happen is petroleum refiners would have to cut the amount of sulfur now found in their diesel fuels by 97 percent. This would affect large tractor-trailer rigs, heavy-duty trucks and large buses. The vehicles affected would have to begin complying with the new standards by 2007 and make all the required changes by 2010. Now, the oil industry is expected to be furious, arguing that these changes would dramatically increase its cost for fuel and its shipping costs. Also there are two important points to note here. One, these are just proposals. Under the Clean Air Act, the administration is able to implement new rules without congressional approval, but the new rules must be open to public hearing and public comments. These rules could also be challenged in the courts. Second point, this could become an election-year issue, and whether or not the rules remain in effect could be determined by who is the next president of the United States. If Vice President Al Gore becomes the next president, he is likely to keep these rules in effect. But it is not clear what Texas Governor George W. Bush would do if he became the next president. Again, these are proposed rules expected to be announced sometime today by the Environmental Protection Agency. Kelly Wallace, CNN, reporting live from the White House.
EPA to Propose Crackdown on Pollution from Heavy Trucks and Buses