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Mixed reactions to U.S. "higher efficiency" plans |
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Plans to reduce gasoline use by 20% in 10 years through tougher fuel efficiency standards for cars and light trucks, sparked diverse reactions by business and policy leaders around the world. Check them out here!
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2007-01-29
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As part of his Twenty in Ten Plan, U.S. President Bush wants to revise fuel economy standards for cars and light trucks, which he said would cut gasoline use by 5% or 8.5 billion gallons per year by 2017.
In his State of the Union address last week, he also mentioned the issue of global warming, calling climate change a serious global challenge. However, his speech did not cover specific proposals to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from vehicles.
U.S. politics: Bush proposals are "long overdue"
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Following Bush's speech, several politicians called for even more stringent standards. Democrat senator Charles Schumer said the President's proposals were "long overdue and should be expanded." In the coming weeks, Schumer and other senators plan to introduce federal legislation that would require carmakers to increase fuel economy to an average of 35 miles per gallon (mpg) by 2017. Similar proposals by Republicans had already reached the Congress in the last weeks.
California energy officials were disappointed that the President's plan did not call for a cap on greenhouse gases linked to global warming. The State's Global Warming Solutions Act plans to reduce GHG emissions by 25% by 2020, addressing also refrigerants with high Global Warming Potential in Mobile Air Conditioning.
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Great Britain and Canada welcome Bush's move
"I do believe that this whole debate is now moving in a completely different and more positive direction," commented British Prime Minister Tony Blair, urging the U.S. to intensify the combat against climate change, global warming and GHG emissions.
"We've got a lot of work in Canada to do on reducing greenhouse gases", said Canada's Environment Minister John Baird.
Carmakers ready for change
At the Washington Auto Show, carmakers highlighted their work to develop fuel-efficient technologies. In several presentations to key policymakers, the industry stressed their efforts to develop alternative technologies.
Next steps
The administration and Congress now have to work together to codify new CAFE* standards for passenger and light duty vehicles. It is estimated that the U.S. could save 1 million barrels of oil per day by increasing fleet-wide fuel economy by only 2 mpg. Using already available technologies would be sufficient to achieve this target.
Background
President Bush's announcement comes after a recent study by CBS News showed that a majority of Americans are highly concerned over climate change. 70% of the 1,168 respondents thought that global warming is an environmental problem that is causing a serious impact now.
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*The federal Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standard is the sales weighted average fuel economy, expressed in miles per gallon (mpg), of a manufacturer's fleet of passenger cars or light trucks, manufactured for sale in the U.S. Currently, it is at 27.5 mpg for passenger cars, and 24.1 for light trucks.
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