(Adds no immediate CARB comment, background)

By David Shepardson

WASHINGTON, Nov 9 (Reuters) - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency $(EPA.AU)$ said on Wednesday it is considering adopting new regulations to address locomotive air pollution.

"EPA has formed a team to evaluate how best to address air pollutant emissions from the locomotive sector. This team will develop a set of options and recommendations for possible EPA regulatory actions addressing new locomotives and new locomotive engines," the agency said.

The California Air Resources Board $(CARB)$ in April 2017 had asked the EPA to set more stringent emission standards for new locomotives and new locomotive engines.

The EPA is not endorsing California's request but said it plans to propose revisions to existing locomotive preemption regulations "to ensure they don’t inappropriately limit California’s and other states’ authorities under the Clean Air Act to address their air quality issues."

CARB did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

EPA has not updated its air pollutant emissions regulations from locomotives since 2008. The agency noted in California and elsewhere locomotives remain a significant source of emissions "often disproportionately impacting the health of communities near railyards and ports."

EPA noted that in August Congress passed climate legislation that provides $3 billion for grants and rebates to reduce air pollution at ports and another $60 million to the Diesel Emissions Reduction Act program.

CARB has proposed starting in 2030 that only locomotives less than 23 years old would be able to be used in California and in 2024 "all locomotives with automatic shutoff devices would not be permitted to idle longer than 30 minutes, unless for an exempt reason."

The proposal, which will be taken up at a Nov. 18 CARB board meeting, is expected to reduce statewide locomotive emissions by approximately the equivalent of removing all heavy-duty diesel trucks from California’s roads for all of 2030.

(Reporting by David Shepardson Editing by Chris Reese and Bill Berkrot)

((David.Shepardson@thomsonreuters.com; 2028988324;))