International Cooperation

Global Context for Promoting Cleaner Fuels and Vehicles Worldwide

Today, transportation demand is growing rapidly in developing countries. This, combined with rising personal vehicle ownership, is causing significant impacts on urban air quality and greenhouse gas emissions. For example, transport is potentially one of the biggest sources of carbon dioxide (CO2) and particulate matter pollution, especially in cities.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), outdoor air pollution contributes annually to over 4.2 million premature deaths worldwide Exit and it now ranks among the top global health risk burdens. ExitThe WHO study, Ambient air pollution: A global assessement of exposure and burden of disease (PDF)(121 pp, 5.41M, About PDF)Exit reports that 91% of the world’s population lives in places where the air quality levels exceed WHO limits.

The line graph projects that transportation energy consumption in non-OECD countries are expected to nearly double by 2050, whereas OCED countries are projected to remain approximately stable.

Figure shows the increase in energy consumption by transport in non-OECD countries. Source: EIA International Energy Outlook 2019 (85 pp, 1.5M, About PDF), slide 67 (page 35).

Globally, the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) predicts in its International Energy Outlook 2019 (PDF) (85 pp, 1.5 M, About PDF) Exitthat refined petroleum and other liquid fuels will remain the dominant source of energy for the transportation sector through 2050. The EIA report predicts that energy demand in the transport sector will grow in developing countries (defined here as countries that are not a part of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development [OECD]Exit), as the chart (right) displays, but remain largely the same for OECD countries.

As energy consumption by transportation is forecasted to grow in non-OECD countries and to slightly decline in OECD countries, non-OECD countries will account for about 65% of the world's transportation-related energy use by 2050. Passenger transportation energy use in non-OECD countries is expected to grow faster than for any other transportation mode, with a near doubling Exit between 2017 and 2050.

To address these issues, the Partnership for Clean Fuels and Vehicles (PCFV) promotes cleaner fuels and vehicles in developing and transition countries. Specifically, PCFV works toward the global elimination of lead in gasoline and the phase down of sulfur in diesel fuel to 50 parts per million (ppm), and promotes the introduction of cleaner, more efficient vehicles.

EPA is a founding and supporting member of PCFV, a public-private global initiative originally founded at the World Summit for Sustainable Development (WSSD) Exit in 2002.

Contacts

For additional information on EPA's work with the Partnership for Clean Fuels and Vehicles, contact:

Angela Bandemehr

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

Office of International and Tribal Affairs (2670R)

1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW

Washington, DC 20460

E-mail: bandemehr.angela@epa.gov

(202) 564-1427