Most people know about the positive effects of developing greener, lighter cars. However, could there be a downside too?
President Barack Obama’s national fuel efficiency standards in the USA have come in for criticism in The Wall Street Journal where a columnist points out that there could be severe costs in terms of urban air pollution and human life.
Robert O Grady suggests that the standards, which are designed to address climate change and reduce dependence on imported energy, ignore the criteria air pollutants currently regulated under the Clean Air Act such as smog, particulate matter, carbon monoxide, sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxides and lead.
The author suggests that Mr Obama’s fuel efficiency proposals may worsen emissions of these harmful gases. By the White House’s own calculation the new rules will increase the average price of a new car by $1,300 and with the majority of the pollution coming from the oldest, dirtiest cars the Obama plan could actually slow progress by making people less likely to buy newer, cleaner cars due to the increased cost.
There are also fears that the Obama fuel efficiency plan may contribute to a significant increase in highway deaths as the vehicles required to meet the new CAFE standard will become lighter in weight. A study by the National Research Council in 2001 during the last increase in CAFE standards concluded that downsizing and down-weighting vehicles will result in a ‘safety penalty’. The National Research Council estimated that in 1993 there were between 1,300 and 2,600 motor vehicle crash deaths that would not have occurred if the cars were as heavy as in 1976.
The author however, insists that Mr Obama should be addressing the problem of climate change – but he believes other approaches have more merits and that Mr Obama’s fuel efficiency and CO2 tailpipe regulations should be subjected to rigorous cost-benefit analysis.
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