EPA finalizes new gasoline sulfur limits

The Environmental Protection Agency on Monday set new limits on the amount of sulfur permitted in gasoline, capping a lobbying battle that pitted the oil and refining industries against automakers and public health groups.

The EPA’s “Tier 3” gasoline rule ratchets down sulfur content to 10 parts per million from 30. The agency said it would bring $13 in health benefits for every dollar spent to comply with the standard, amounting to between $6.7 billion and $19 billion in annual health benefits by 2030. Those health benefits include reducing respiratory — such as asthma — and heart ailments linked to soot, smog and other air pollution caused by sulfur emissions.