New Federal Rules Mirror Pennsylvania
Clean Vehicles Program
Washington, DC—President Obama announced today that the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Transportation will
establish a uniform federal standard to reduce global warming pollution
from cars and light trucks and improve vehicle efficiency. The
standard, which will be the first-ever federal global warming standard
for vehicles, will largely mirror the standard already adopted by
Pennsylvania and 13 other states.
“We’re thrilled by this announcement to put cleaner cars on the road,"
said Nathan Willcox, Energy & Clean Air Advocate for
PennEnvironment. "President Obama is proving himself behind the wheel
in the race to a clean energy economy. This historic action will
reduce our nation’s dependence on oil, save Pennsylvanians money at the
pump, and cut global warming pollution. This is what leadership looks
like."
The standard will reduce global warming pollution from new vehicles by
30 percent and achieve an average fuel economy of 35.5 miles per gallon
by 2016 – four years earlier than under current law. According to the
White House, the program will save 1.8 billion barrels of oil and
reduce global warming pollution by 900 million metric tons, which is
equivalent to eliminating the pollution from 177 million of today’s
cars or 194 coal plants.
“PennEnvironment applauds the Rendell administration and the other
Pennsylvania officials who helped enact the Pennsylvania Clean Vehicles
Program, as well as the 13 other states that spearheaded the drive for
cleaner cars. We wouldn’t be here today if it weren’t for their
trailblazing efforts to reduce our oil dependence and work to solve
global warming,” concluded Willcox.
Background:
* PennEnvironment worked to adopt the clean cars standards in
Pennsylvania in 2006 as part of the Pennsylvania Clean Vehicles Program.
* Passenger vehicles are the second largest source of global warming
pollution nationwide.
* The Clean Air Act allows (1) California to set auto emission
standards that are stronger than federal standards (no such standards
currently exist); and (2) other states to adopt California’s auto
emission standards.
* In 2005, California adopted first-of-their-kind standards requiring
cars and light-duty trucks to limit their global warming pollution. A
total of 13 other states—Arizona, Connecticut, Maine, Maryland,
Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania,
Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington—have adopted the tailpipe
standards. Several additional states are actively considering adopting
the standards.
* In 2007, Congress passed the first increase in fuel economy standards
in 32 years; those standards require an average fuel economy of 35
mile-per-gallon by 2020.
