California and other states will most likely be given permission to toughen air quality rules soon after Obama takes office, forcing automakers to produce cars that are far more efficient than those allowed under current federal standards.
More than a dozen states will be able to enforce their own greenhouse gas emission standards on automobiles, rules that are key to fighting global warming.
From the LA Times:
“This is an essential piece of the nation’s environmental strategy,” said Tim Carmichael, president of the Coalition for Clean Air. Environmentalists estimate that cars create about a quarter of U.S. carbon emissions.
But it’s a nightmare scenario for automakers, which argue that complying with the California guidelines would create regulatory headaches and a technology burden that could add at least $1,000 and as much as $5,000 to the cost of each vehicle.
As such, the prospect of the waiver is creating a fierce debate about automotive regulation, pitting concerns about the environment against the deeply troubled finances of an industry that has thrown itself at the mercy of Washington just to remain solvent.
Unsurprisingly, automakers are calling foul, with GM corporate spokesperson Greg Martin complaining that asking GM to meet California emissions standards is like asking a cancer patient to “finish chemo and then go run the Boston Marathon.” Automakers have opposed California’s standards in court for years.
Honda is the only company that has accepted reality and begun preparing for new emissions standards, making plans for a fleet that’s even more efficient than is called for under the strict California rules.
Mary Nichols, chairwoman of California’s Air Resources Board, says the likelihood of getting a waver from new EPA chief Lisa Jackson to go ahead with implementing and forcing their emissions regulations is over 95%.
Automakers have had years and years to prepare for this, and most of them have dragged their feet, focusing on fighting the rules instead of figuring out how to comply with them. It’s about time they were forced to be accountable for the damage their vehicles are doing to the environment.
As Honda’s VP of government affairs said, “Any company that is not assuming a constant rate of improvement in fuel economy and carbon emissions is making a big mistake.”
Link [LA Times]
Photo credit: LeHighValleyLive.com
