The Detroit Free Press reports:
Congressional negotiators are close to agreement on an increase in fuel economy standards to 35 miles per gallon by 2020, with some caveats to satisfy U.S. automakers.
What caveats?
The compromise would preserve the distinction between cars and trucks, something Detroit automakers have fought for, while giving federal regulators strict limits on how to put the increases into place. It also would include a provision backed by the UAW aimed at keeping small-car production in the United States.
Still, much better than no deal at all.
This post was created for ClimateProgress.org, a project of the Center for American Progress Action Fund.
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Comments
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Jones Posted 8:15 pm
27 Nov 2007
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justlou Posted 9:33 pm
27 Nov 2007
Trucks are used differently than cars? From what I see, 90% of the time trucks are used exactly the same way as cars -- to move one person around very, very inefficiently.
The best we can hope for is that gasoline prices will continue to rise steeply and the market will move people into the higher mileage end of the fleets. Even if we average 40+ mpg by 2020 we are still going to be in a big world of oil trouble.
As Elizabeth Kolbert wrote, the car of the future may be no car. How about this as a goal Congress -- fewer cars on the road by 2020 than in 1990? Getting fewer people into cars may be the best standard of all. Wow, just think about all the income that would not be wasted on automobilia and how that income could be invested in something sustainable.
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randino Posted 10:20 pm
27 Nov 2007
The common thinking of the beltway environmentalists is that something beats nothing. Examples such as this deal cause one to pause and question the wisdom of that nostrum. It is funny how what looks like wisdom or being practical at first, can look dumber and dumber in retrospect. I think that is what is going to happen to this accomplishment.
Randy Cunningham
Randy Cunningham
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John former Marine Posted 11:15 pm
27 Nov 2007
I also have to say that when I was active duty and this rediculous war for oil pipeline security was started in Afghanistan and Iraq, just about all of the Marines I knew (except for the Christo-fascists) understood what was going on. And what made me feel really cynical about "serving" my country wasn't seeing 500 war protesters on the Capitol step, it was not seeing 5,000,000,000 protesters shutting down Washington. When there has been such an obvious, flagrant violation of the public trust and of human decency for capitalist interests and yet the best this country can do is a few protesters, that's enough to make anyone in the military stop "serving." Yes...I hope the price of gas keeps going up. Maybe that will remind you all of the real price of a barrel of oil.
I would expect you all to pay me at least $100 for a loaf of Wonderbread is you wanted me to procure it by kicking down somebody's door, kill or abuse half their family, turn them into refugees, hire contractors to guard their bread box, and put landmines and depleted uranium around their house. But you all think gas should be $1.25 a gallon! Ha!
Those (often first generation) black, Hispanic, and otherwise poor American legionnaires...I mean, Marines and soldiers, wouldn't be doing it if they had better opportunities and weren't brainwashed by million-dollar advertising campaigns ("Can you be an Army of One?") and the hope of going to college. They're being exploited. If you don't want them to be tools of American foreign policy, be willing to pay $10/gal., or better yet, give up your car. Yes, it is time to sacrifice...the car.
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odograph Posted 11:21 pm
27 Nov 2007
I'm not so sure. I expect that the law will trail actual vehicle adoption (as CAFE Standards have done historically), while allowing politicians to pride themselves that they're actually something.
Is any real action looming after this?
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randino Posted 11:45 pm
27 Nov 2007
I have seen a lot of recent legislation about the climate and energy, both here in Ohio and nationally. There is NOTHING to get excited about, about any of the reforms proposed. They are little timid proposals, for little timid people. CO2 won't kill the planet. Timidity will.
As I said. Ugh.
Randy Cunningham
Randy Cunningham
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Sam Wells Posted 2:25 am
28 Nov 2007
My understanding is that CAFE only applies to vehicles with a gross vehicle weight rating of under 8,500 pounds. Above that and it's a heavy-duty truck. Yep, some SUV are above 8,500 GVWR and could be exempted, although I haven't read the new version of the bill.
Onward through the fog
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Ron Steenblik Posted 9:02 am
28 Nov 2007
As for vehicles with a gross weight rating of 8,500 pounds or greater being exempt from the CAFE standards, there is one way to ensure that those are not merely purchased as passenger vehicles: require that anybody operating one be in possession of a trucker's license.
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