Sunday, August 12, 2018

EPA guts emissions rule
On Thursday, the EPA announced a proposed rule that would freeze fuel-efficiency standards to hold them to 2020 levels. It rolls back an Obama-administration requirement to increase the fuel standard to 54 mpg by 2025. Supporters of the move say the fuel standards were increased prematurely, but Keith Brewer, an environmental consultant based in Tennessee, says there are clear winners and losers when sales of cars with large engines continue. "You have to look at who it assists if you reduce the fuel economy, and who it assists is the automaker," points out. "Who it doesn't assist, and that includes Tennessee, is the taxpayer." Supporters of weakening the fuel standards say they were increased prematurely. There's now a 60-day public comment period for the change. The new fuel-efficiency target would be 37 mpg by 2026. Recent low gas prices have boosted sales of larger, less-fuel-efficient vehicles, which is a shift that many American automakers want to capitalize on. But industry analysts predict gas prices will be going up this year. Dr. Georges Benjamin is the executive director of the American Public Health Association. He warns that air pollution generated by continued use of fossil fuel-burning cars comes at a cost to everyone's health and bottom line. "We know that air pollution is a direct health hazard and not a theoretical one," he points out. "This proposal by the administration will result directly in more heart attacks, more asthma attacks, more sick kids and more spending out of our pockets for sick care." Brewer says it's important to remember that historically gas prices shift and what goes down will most certainly go up. "It's almost like a domino effect, if the gas prices go up, and it will with our dependence on foreign oil," Brewer adds. "It seems to me they hold us hostage and did back in the '70s." Thursday's EPA proposal also is an attempt to revoke states' ability to set higher fuel-efficiency standards than the federal government, which many predict will ignite a legal battle. Fourteen states have their own higher standards in place.


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