Richmond – In a huge win for Virginia’s
environment, public health and national security, the Obama administration
today announced new standards for automobile fuel economy and global warming
emissions. An Environment Virginia
analysis found that these new federal standards – based on the “clean cars
program” developed by California and adopted by 13 other states – will save
Virginians 324 million gallons of gasoline by 2016 as compared to the previous
federal standards, while reducing emissions of global warming pollutants and
providing a net economic savings to consumers.
“Thanks to President Obama’s leadership, the cars of
tomorrow will be cleaner and cost less to fuel than the cars of today,” said
Environment Virginia Advocate J.R. Tolbert.
“Today’s announcement is the direction that America should be taking when
addressing our energy needs. Rather than
drilling off our coastlines we should prioritize conservation and renewable
energy when meeting the nation’s energy needs.”
In addition to the significant expected gasoline
savings, the new standards will also mean a reduction in global warming
pollution in Virginia
equivalent to eliminating the pollution from 598,000 of today’s cars for a year,
as compared with the previous federal standards.
Environment Virginia
was joined by State Senator Donald McEachin in applauding today’s announcement.
“In response to the news
that AG Cuccinelli is considering filing yet another lawsuit, Senator McEachin
said, "I continue to be frustrated and dismayed by the Attorney General's
actions. Rather than protect Virginians from internet predators, consumer fraud
and identity theft, he insists on filing ludicrous lawsuits that waste time and
money. Moreover, these EPA regulations will save Virginians almost $100 million
dollars by reducing vehicular gas use. This does not even speak of the
improvements to our quality of life by reducing pollution which will improve
our air and make it easier to breathe for the many Virginians, particularly our
children and our seniors, with asthma, lung disease or other breathing issues."
While Virginia
has failed to enact clean car standards, the push for cleaner cars has been
happening for decades. In the late 1960s, state officials in CaliforniaLos Angeles
by adopting the first-ever tailpipe emission standards for cars. This paved the way for federal adoption of
vehicle standards in the Clean Air Act, though the Act allowed California to continue
setting its own, tougher emission standards for cars, and enabled other states
to adopt these standards. responded to horrific air pollution in cities
like
In 2002, California enacted legislation
designed to reduce global warming pollution from automobiles. This resulted in
rules to reduce global warming pollution from new cars and light trucks by 30
percent by 2016 compared with 2002 levels – a step that would result in
improved vehicle fuel economy.
Frustrated with
federal inaction to address automobile emissions and fuel economy, 13 states –
Arizona, Connecticut, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico
New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington – soon
moved to adopt the program.
Automakers and
auto dealers, who opposed the program at the state level, challenged the
program in court, while the Bush administration Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA) delayed a decision on whether to grant the waiver needed under the Clean
Air Act for California
and other states to implement the standards. Following the Supreme Court’s 2007
ruling in Massachusetts v. EPA that
the agency possessed the authority to regulate global warming pollution, and
two years after California’s
initial request, the Bush administration EPA finally denied the waiver in December
2007.
As one of his
first acts in office, President Obama instructed the EPA to reconsider California’s waiver
request, which later resulted in EPA granting the waiver. In May, the Obama
administration announced an agreement with the automakers and the state of California that enabled the creation of a single,
national fuel economy/global warming emissions program for cars based on the California The just-announced standards are the result
of that effort. standards.
The
new standards are expected to reduce gasoline consumption by as much as 11.6
billion gallons per year in 2016 nationally—nearly as much as is consumed by
all the vehicles in Texas in a year—and save consumers up to $31.8 billion
annually at the pump in 2016. The new
standard will also reduce global warming pollution from vehicles by 108 million
metric tons per year in 2016, or as much global warming pollution as is
produced by 28 500-MW coal-fired power plants.
Despite
the agreement between the
Obama administration, automakers and California
– and the fact that 80 percent of the public approves of stronger fuel economy
standards for vehicles – the clean cars program still faces attacks. Senator
Lisa Murkowski’s Dirty Air Act (S.J.Res. 26), for example, would effectively
veto EPA’s scientific finding that global warming pollutants threaten human
health and the environment – thereby blocking the standards. The companion
resolution in the House – introduced by three separate sets of members,
including the Republican leadership (H.J.Res. 77), Democrats Ike Skelton (MO)
and Collin Peterson (MN; H.J.R. 76), and Republicans Jerry Moran (KS) and
Marsha Blackburn (TN; H.J.Res. 66) – and three additional House bills (H.R.
391, H.R. 4396, H.R. 4572) also would block the clean cars program and otherwise
undermine the Clean Air Act.
“Weakening the
Clean Air Act would be one of the worst moves Congress could make for Virginia’s environment,”
said Tolbert. “We urge Virginia’s U.S.
Representatives and Senators to let the country reap the benefits of these
clean car standards by opposing any and all efforts to weaken the Clean Air
Act.”
###
Environment
Virginia is a state-based, citizen-funded environmental
organization working for clean air, clean water, and open space.
