A federal court in Washington, DC, has upheld EPA's Oct. 1, 2002 deadline to require lower-emission engines in new trucks.

Meanwhile, Caterpillar said it would lay off about 470 full-time workers and cut another 290 temporary jobs at two Illinois plants that make heavy-duty engines, Bloomberg News reported.

Caterpillar and Detroit Diesel had challenged the EPA deadline. Caterpillar now faces fines for not having a compliant engine ready on time. Detroit Diesel recently submitted for EPA certification an engine it says would comply with the tougher standards.