The latest EPA announcement comes on the heels of the EPA's new 2008 eight-hour ozone standard, which by 2010 will begin singling out counties that can't meet the new 75 parts per billion standard. The EPA said marine and locomotive diesel engines are a significant contributor to pollution in areas currently in violation of the new ozone standard.

Officials with Utah Railway Company, whose core business is hauling coal, were not able to comment for this story. URC's Web site claims it transports more than 90,000 carloads of freight per year in central and northern Utah. URC says it transports 60,000 carloads of coal annually to power plants and industrial customers.

URC's parent company, Connecticut-based Genesee & Wyoming Inc., operates 48 railroads in nine U.S. regions.

"I'm sure our locomotive folks need a little time to study the announcement and determine how it applies to our local railroads," Genesee spokesman Michael Williams said in an e-mail.

The EPA said its new emissions requirement will impact all diesel locomotives, which includes line-haul, switch and passenger rail. Marine sources such as ferries, tugboats, Great Lake freighters and all types of marine auxiliary engines will also be affected, the EPA said.

By 2030 the EPA estimates the new standards will help prevent 1,400 premature deaths and 120,000 lost workdays, with anticipated health benefits from cleaner air valued as high as $12 billion.

The EPA said it is also finalizing what it calls idle-reduction requirements for newly built and remanufactured locomotives.

The Natural Resources Defense Council said in a statement it has been advocating for tougher standards for diesel-powered marine and locomotive engines.

"While ships and trains deliver many things Americans want, nobody needs to breathe their toxic soot," NRDC director Richard Kassel said. "These ships and trains emit as much smog-forming pollution each year as 120 coal-fired power plants."

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E-mail: sspeckman@desnews.com