[Baltimore Sun] Clearing the air about truck emissions | READER COMMENTARY
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Readers of The Baltimore Sun deserve more insights and facts than those presented in the recent commentary, “Diesel trucks are disastrous for children’s health” (Sept 17), by Dr. S. Christy Sadreameli, a pediatric pulmonologist at Johns Hopkins Hospital.
Maryland’s children and families are breathing healthier air than ever before, thanks, in part, to our state’s trucking industry’s investments in cleaner technology. According to the latest data, 62% of all commercial diesel trucks registered in Maryland are the newest generation models. That means they’re fully equipped with particulate filters and selective catalytic reduction (SCR) emissions scrubber systems, which virtually eliminate emissions of smog-forming compounds and particulate matter. About 75% of Maryland’s transit buses and 78% of school buses also use this latest generation diesel. This makes our state second in the nation for the percentage of new technology diesel transit buses on the road, eighth for the highest percentage of clean diesel school buses in operation and 13th in the percentage of advanced technology diesel trucks in operation.
As for asthma and air quality, despite the bleak picture painted by Dr. Sadreamali, according to the Maryland Department of Health, emergency room visits for asthma among children under 18 declined by 70% from 2015 to 2020. And the Maryland Department of the Environment touts “Maryland’s shrinking ozone problem.” The agency noted that in 2022 the ozone levels exceeded the national standard just three days of the year, compared to 79 days in 2002. Last year, only two out of 365 days were the emissions standards exceeded, and there were no “red days.” More unhealthy air conditions in 2023 were attributed to the numerous Canadian wildfires than local conditions.
The future of trucking will surely include zero-emission vehicles, but their timeline to implementation at scale has many challenges yet to overcome and is measured in decades. In the meantime, we can and must continue making progress toward even cleaner air and lower greenhouse gas emissions by turning over the fleet to advanced-technology internal combustion engines and increasing the use of more renewable, low-carbon fuels.
— Allen Schaeffer, Frederick
The writer is the executive director of Engine Technology Forum.
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