January 29, 2021 2:07 PM EDT
General Motors recently announced that the company “aspires to eliminate tailpipe emissions from new light-duty vehicles by 2035.” Many in the press were quick to credit GM for this announcement, but it’s important to remember that aspirations are only the first (and easiest) step in any plan. Read more >
January 19, 2021 2:19 PM EDT
With a new administration taking office and a new decade upon us, it’s a perfect opportunity to recommit to holding the automobile industry accountable under the Clean Air Act. While manufacturers continue to be in compliance with fuel economy and emissions regulations, improvements are stalling, and a continued shift away from cars to SUVs and light trucks shows the country progressing far too slowly to avert the worst impacts of climate change. With a new presidential administration set to take over, it’s time to put the previous administration’s rollback in the rear-view and the pedal to the metal, pushing industry onto a more sustainable path. Read more >
December 3, 2020 9:45 AM EDT
Last week, General Motors announced it’s ending its part in the lawsuit supporting the Trump administration’s illegal elimination of California’s ability to set global warming emissions standards for passenger cars and trucks. While the news is a welcome action and something UCS and others have been pressuring GM to do, done in the wake of the election of a new president, it screams of political expediency, not environmental leadership.
July 30, 2020 12:14 PM EDT
On Monday, EPA’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) announced an investigation into the so-called “SAFE” rule, which rolled back Obama-era global warming emissions and fuel economy standards and will cost both consumers and the environment. This investigation is just the latest example of the many ways in which the administration’s attempts to cut corners and ignore science are being challenged.
May 13, 2020 10:03 AM EDT
While the administration just finalized its reduction in vehicle efficiency from 5 percent per year to no better than a measly 1.5 percent per year (despite their own evidence showing how bad it is for the country), that hasn’t stopped the auto industry from seeking even further reductions. In a new proposed change to how passenger cars and trucks are tested, the Trump administration is trying to give automakers a carve-out that would further increase global warming emissions from new cars by 1.6 percent.
Admittedly, this change is a little wonky so let me lay it out as best as I can. But the bottom line is that automakers are seeking even further, permanent reductions in the stringency of global warming emissions standards, right on the heels of a massive rollback of emissions standards.
