Administration Announcing New Auto Emissions Standards
Paul Burman on May 19th, 2009
The Obama Administration is prepared to announce today more stringent auto emissions standards. This announcement, as reported by Steven Mufson of the Washington Post and others, is slated to establish the first nationwide regulation for greenhouse gases and raise vehicle fuel efficiency targets to 35.5 miles per gallon (MPG) by the year 2016.
Transportation accounts for about one-third of American greenhouse gas emissions, so aggressively pursuing targets that increase fuel economy will have an important impact on our nation’s emissions. The plan that the Obama Administration is supporting mirrors the standards that California has adopted to reduce tailpipe emissions. The California clean cars standard was the first of its kind to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from vehicle tailpipes and was adopted by 13 other states and the District of Columbia.
Automakers fiercely opposed the California clean cars standard, claiming that the requirement to abide by two separate emissions standards (the less stringent federal and more stringent California standards) would negatively impact their business. By increasing the federal fuel efficiency standard to meet the California one, the Obama administration is accommodating to the wishes of the automakers and pleasing drivers.
The new fuel efficiency standard would raise the average fuel economy for cars and light trucks to 39 MPG and 30 MPG respectively.
Though there may be some short-term price increases for new, higher-mileage vehicles, that cost is likely to be offset by fuel savings over the useful life of the car. Furthermore, as more fuel efficient cars and trucks become more commonplace and the technology becomes more standardized, the price of these better vehilces is likely to come down — much in the same way that the price of including seatbelts and airbags have.
Like what you see? Check out these related posts:
- Administration Signals New Stance on Emissions Trading
- EPA Approves California Vehicle Greenhouse Gas Emissions Limits
- Press Release: Guide Rejects Internationally Accepted Third-Party Standards in Favor of Subjective, Non-CO2 Related Criteria
- President Obama Addresses the UN on Climate Change
- Like a Volt from the (not so) Blue
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CarbonNeutrality ( Carbon Neutrality ) Rip-Off
Joseph Turquie and Neil Feldstein brings new CarbonNeutrality ( Carbon Neutrality ) Trading pollution credits business which is just a rip-off that it may allow dirty business facilities to continue to operate in violation of clean air laws.
Carbon Neutrality certificates are sold by franchise dealers such as Atlantic-Millennium John Staluppi Auto Groupto car buyers who feel so guilty about contributing to global warming and of course, don’t tell you how they “guarantee” that “they” will reduce carbon dioxide while you are signing your loan contract with Mr. Finance manager.
A few years back; Joseph Turquie and Neil Feldstein Neil Lincoln/Mercury Hyundai Corp., d/b/a Neil Lincoln-Mercury Hyundai (Medford);Neil Buick Corporation, d/b/a Neil Buick Pontiac Dodge Isuzu (Medford), nearly 25 years of experience misleading and deceptive advertisements included those which:
-Promote the lowest prices in ads, without disclosing (or doing so in extremely fine print) that the advertised price excluded a range of additional fees and charges or applied rebates of very limited availability;
-Promote "$0 Down payment" that misleads consumers into believing they can complete the purchase/lease of a vehicle without paying-out any money. Consumers later learn that registration fees, taxes and other charges must be paid when the contract is signed;
-Advertise "0% APR" that fails to disclose conditions, qualifications and limitations that materially affect the offer's availability and violates the federal Truth-In-Lending law;
Advertise low monthly lease payments in violation of federal advertising laws that require the disclosure of information about other costs that would significantly increase the total cost of leasing; and
-Promote "Bad Credit? No Problem!" ads that mislead consumers into believing that they can receive financing regardless of their credit history and fails to disclose that the finance rates for high risk borrowers may be prohibitively high.
Neil Lincoln-Mercury Hyundai, Neil Buick Pontiac Dodge Isuzu and other a few other dealers have agreed to pay a total of $57,500 in penalties and to stop their misleading and deceptive marketing practices. details: http://www.oag.state.ny.us/media_center/2004/apr/...
Still feel so guilty about contributing to global warming?
Carbon offsets are not about guilt, they\\'re about taking responsibility for the carbon footprint that you currently have. It is impossible to have a carbon neutral footprint. Our society is structure in such a way that makes carbon emissions unavoidable, but Carbonfund.org\\'s work to support renewable energy, energy efficiency and reforestation have helped us move toward a social structure that is carbon neutral.
Carbonfund.org\\'s partnership with Hyundai is supporting crucial reforestation projects around the world. Deforestation causes almost 25% of all global warming emissions and we congratulate Hyundai\\'s contribution to slowing our loss of biodiversity and culture caused by deforestation. Read more about our partnership with Hyundai here: http://hyundai.carbonfund.org/