Fleet Management News & Business Info | Commercial Carrier Journal
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/846064
18 commercial carrier journal | july 2017 cord. Speculation has swirled the past several months over the likelihood that Trump would delay the implementation of greenhouse gas Phase 2, a reso- lution that drove a lot of refinements to model-year 2017 heavy truck engines. With each passing day, it appears less likely that Trump will do anything with Phase 2 – which will have a more immediate, and arguably more lasting, impact on trucking than the Paris Accord ever would, beyond what is already set in motion. Under the terms of the agreement, each of the participating 148 countries should regularly report its plans to mitigate global warming. That sounds a lot like the job of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and similar state agencies, and you can't swing a dead cat on the highway without violating some kind of EPA legislation. According to EPA, 6,587 million metric tons of carbon dioxide-equivalent GHG emissions were produced in the United States in 2015. That's down from the previous year. The United States didn't sign the Paris Accord until April of the following year, and it didn't go into force until six months ago. I think we probably all have that one friend who we discover is an expert on a topic right after it becomes nationally trendy. I've got this one buddy who, according to his Facebook feed, is a leading expert on the Paris Climate Accord. The discovery of this new knowledge coincided with President Trump's decision in May to leave the pact. If you'd have asked my friend six months ago, he probably would have told you the Paris Accord was a Honda dealership in France. He's a nice guy, but come on. As one of the leading contributors toward global emissions, it's im- portant that the United States take a leadership role in throttling back climate change, but it's not as if the Paris Accord was our only strategy of attack. If you need proof, you need only look on the highway. Trucking is surging fast-forward to cleaner emissions with or without U.S. involvement in the Paris Ac- PRODUCT REVIEWS, OEM & SUPPLIER NEWS AND EQUIPMENT MANAGEMENT TRENDS BY JASON CANNON LEADING CONTRIBUTOR: The U.S. must take a leadership role in throt- tling back climate change. CLEANER TRUCKING: It's not as if the Paris Climate Accord was our only strategy of attack. HIGHER PRICE TAG: A truck that of- fers 3 to 5 percent more fuel economy does offer a payback. Keep on trucking U.S. will stay on green path without Paris Accord Ryder's compressed natural gas fleet is just one example of trucking's path toward a greener future.