EPA Proposes First National Greenhouse Gas Pollution Standards in U.S. History

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contacts:

Tony Kreindler, National Media Director, Climate, 202-445-8108, tkreindler@edf.org
Vickie Patton, Deputy General Counsel, 720-837-6239, vpatton@edf.org

(Washington – September 15, 2009) The Obama administration today proposed new fuel economy benchmarks and the first national standards for greenhouse gas emissions in U.S. history, putting the nation on a path to more efficient fuel use and significant pollution reductions from cars and light trucks over the next two decades. These passenger vehicles account for about 40 percent of all U.S. oil consumption and nearly 20 percent of all U.S. carbon dioxide emissions.

“This is a critical step to reduce our dependence on foreign oil and curb pollution that threatens our health,” said Environmental Defense Fund President Fred Krupp. “It will deliver immediate benefits for the country as Congress crafts comprehensive climate legislation.”

Under the proposed new standards from the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Transportation, vehicles would meet an estimated combined average emissions level of 250 grams of carbon dioxide (CO₂) per mile in model year 2016, comparable to 35.5 miles per gallon. The proposed new standards would apply to model year 2012 to 2016 vehicles.

EPA estimates the proposal will reduce U.S. CO₂ emissions by 950 million metric tons and save 1.8 billion barrels of oil. In total, the combined EPA and DOT standards would reduce CO₂ emissions from the U.S. light-duty fleet by approximately 21 percent by 2030.

Today’s action responds to a 2007 U.S. Supreme Court mandate and will carry out President Obama’s landmark May 19th accord with major automakers, the Governor of California, the United Auto Workers Union, and environmentalists. Passenger cars and light-trucks emit nearly 20 percent of the nation’s greenhouse gases in the form of carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and hydrofluorocarbons. In April, EPA provisionally found that these four contaminants and two other greenhouse gases endanger human health and welfare.

The standards will strengthen national security by curbing America’s reliance on foreign oil and by beginning to address climate-disrupting emissions that will exacerbate geopolitical instability.

Military experts have pointedly recognized these dual policy imperatives:
“Our dependence on foreign oil reduces our international leverage, places our troops in dangerous global regions, funds nations and individuals who wish us harm, and weakens our economy; our dependency and inefficient use of oil also puts our troops at risk.” CNA Military Advisory Board Report—Powering America’s Defense: Energy and the Risks to National Security. Source: General Charles F. “Chuck” Wald et al., CNA Military Advisory Board, Powering America’s Defense: Energy and the Risks to National Security, at i (2009), available at http://www.cna.org/documents/PoweringAmericasDefense.pdf.

“It is quite plausible that within a decade the evidence of an imminent abrupt climate shift may become clear and reliable. * * * Disruption and conflict will be endemic features of life.” Pentagon Commissioned Report— An Abrupt Climate Change Scenario and Its Implications for United States National Security. Source: Peter Schwartz and Doug Randall, An Abrupt Climate Change Scenario and Its Implications for United States National Security (Oct. 2003) (Commissioned by the Department of Defense).

In a 2008 Bush-era report, EPA staff experts analyzed technologies to reduce greenhouse gases from passenger cars and light trucks. See EPA Staff Technical Report: Cost and Effectiveness Estimates of Technologies Used to Reduce Light-duty Vehicle Carbon Dioxide Emissions, EPA420-R-08-008, March 2008. Produced for the National Research Council, the report identified over two dozen technologies in production or impending that can be deployed to cut greenhouse gases and improve fuel economy. The report also documents that extensive greenhouse gas reductions can be achieved through readily accessible engine and transmission enhancements to today’s vehicles. The bottom line: “EPA technical staff concludes there are a large number of technologies which can be applied to cars and trucks that are capable of achieving significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, and improve vehicle fuel economy, at reasonable costs.” ES -1.

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