news Single emissions standard best for car makers, consumers: Prentice

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Single emissions standard best for car makers, consumers: Prentice
1 hour, 20 minutes ago





By Steve Rennie, The Canadian Press

OTTAWA - The Harper government appears to have broken with the Obama administration over whether states and provinces should be allowed to set their own vehicle emissions standards.
Shortly after taking office, the U.S. president asked the federal Environmental Protection Agency to reconsider a Bush-era decision to bar California and other states from setting their own tailpipe rules.
"The federal government must work with, not against, states to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions," U.S. President Barack Obama said in January.
"California has shown bold and bipartisan leadership through its effort to forge 21st century standards. And over a dozen states have followed its lead."
But Environment Minister Jim Prentice said Wednesday that allowing for different standards in each state and province makes automakers less competitive and affects the cost and choices available to car buyers.
"We would certainly encourage, as the government of Canada, to see everyone ascribe to the federal standards, harmonized North American standards that will improve our competitiveness and also protect the environment," Prentice said.
Thirteen other states and the District of Columbia want to adopt standards proposed by California to cut greenhouse-gas emissions 30 per cent in new cars and trucks by 2016.
The California standards are considered more stringent that U.S. federal standards. But the beleaguered Big Three automakers - General Motors, Ford and Chrysler - have balked at regional requirements, saying they would only drive up costs during tough times.
Under U.S. laws, a state must get a waiver from the Environmental Protection Agency to adopt greenhouse-gas emissions standards for vehicles.
The previous administration had rejected California's request for a waiver. Obama has ordered the Environmental Protection Agency to re-think California's request before the end of June.
British Columbia, Quebec and Manitoba already have been working to set their own standards.
Those provinces, along with Ontario and seven U.S. states, form the Western Climate Initiative, a coalition that wants to establish a regional market to trade carbon emissions in an effort to lower greenhouse gases.
Prentice cautioned California's standards aren't guaranteed to outperform national standards.
"Whether or not the California standards yield higher improved environmental outcomes depends, frankly, on the mix of trucks and cars," he said.
"To simply assume that a sub-national standard from another state, when applied to Canada, would yield improved outcomes is not necessarily the case."
Speaking earlier to an Ottawa business crowd, the environment minister reiterated a pledge made two years ago to regulate vehicle emissions.
In April 2007, the Tories announced plans to regulate fuel standards under a piece of legislation called the Motor Vehicle Fuel Consumption Standards Act. The government planned to publish final regulations by the end of 2008.
But since making that announcement, the Harper government has missed its own deadlines to regulate vehicle emissions.
Prentice announced Wednesday that Ottawa now plans to regulate vehicle emissions under another piece of legislation, the Canadian Environmental Protection Act. Final regulations will now be published in the spring of 2010.
"Proceeding under that (original) legislation would require significant changes to the statute," Prentice said. "This could take more than a year to achieve and, frankly, we do not have the luxury of time.
"Our automotive industry, in particular, requires certainty; they need to operate with certainty. It is too important to Canada not to have that."