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As if skyrocketing fuel prices in 2008 were not enough, American trucking companies are now in the midst of the worst recession since the early 1980s.

The U.S. diesel average fell a combined 9.5 cents over the final two weeks of 2008 to $2.327 a gallon, ending the year at its lowest level since June 2005, the Department of Energy reported.

With fuel prices going down, including diesel, truckers are still shutting down and still saying they aren’t making money — proving my own view that the problem is other than fuel prices.

Southern California port officials and state environmental regulators continued pressing their campaign to reduce heavy-truck diesel emissions, approving several controversial measures during 2008 that some truckers said will lead to severe economic hardships.

Diesel engine maker Cummins Inc.’s emissions subsidiary will lay off about 100 workers at a Wisconsin plant, effective immediately, because of the slumping North American truck market, the company said.

U.S. fuel prices continued their steep three-month declines last week, even as the cartel of oil-producing nations announced a record cut in production in an attempt to lift global oil prices in 2009.

The California Air Resources Board has adopted two new rules requiring carriers to add expensive emission-control devices to their trucks and to use fuel-saving equipment endorsed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s SmartWay program.

The world of trucking was turned upside down and shaken like a snow globe during 2008.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has issued its final rule requiring heavy-truck manufacturers to install onboard diagnostic systems starting in 2010 to alert drivers when engine emission systems are malfunctioning or deteriorating.