Engine manufacturers are ready and willing to work with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on proposed new requirements for marine and locomotive diesel engines that will significantly reduce emissions, according to the Engine Manufacturers Association (EMA).
The new ruling is important because it completes a group of recent diesel rules from the EPA designed to reduce emissions from all new diesel engines in the U.S. by over 90 percent.
Previously issued rules are showing dramatic emission reductions from on-highway trucks and buses, nonroad construction and farm equipment, and stationary generators and pumps, and already require the use of cleaner diesel fuel in marine and locomotive applications.
Jed Mandel, EMA president, said that engine manufacturers are committed to developing and modifying existing advanced clean diesel engine technologies to meet the new, stringent marine engine emission standards that EPA has proposed.
In January 2007, engine manufacturers successfully introduced new heavy-duty truck engines with emission control systems that reduce PM and NOx emissions, and they are now working on developing similar technology for nonroad engines, Mandel said.
The proposed marine rule, which is part of the EPA's National Clean Diesel Campaign, will require a 90 percent reduction in particulate matter (PM) emissions, an 80 percent reduction in nitrogen oxides, and additional reductions in hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide and air toxics.
According to Mandel, meeting the substantial emission reductions in the EPA's marine proposal poses significant challenges in terms of safety, reliability, vessel space and weight constraints, and engine operating temperatures in the marine environment.
But with the advances in engine design that will be used to comply with the marine standards, the availability of Ultra Low Sulfur Diesel Fuel, and further refinements in aftertreatment systems, the EMA believes that they will be able to achieve major reductions in engine emissions.
The proposed marine reductions will occur in two phases, with implementation of the most stringent standards scheduled to begin in 2014.