The following is a statement from Deborah Sivas, director and managing attorney of the Earthjustice Environmental Law Clinic at Stanford:

“Today’s decision by the Supreme Court is good for a few international trucking firms, but bad for the public health of everyone in the United States. It basically says that the White House has the right to override our domestic environmental standards in the name of “free trade.” If the Bush administration wants to allow these polluting diesel trucks free rein on US highways, it should consider how high an environmental price all Americans, especially those living in border states, will pay. Many communities near the border, including California’s Imperial Valley and the Los Angeles basin, are already suffering from terrible air pollution levels and they shouldn’t be subjected to the increased asthma and cancer risks posed by more diesel pollution. Thousands of dirtier trucks plying our highways each day will undermine the work of local air districts to clean up the air and will place an extra burden on our factories and power plants to compensate. At a minimum, the Bush administration owes Americans a plan to bring Mexican trucks up to code.”