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newsrel -- ARB asks EPA to reconsider denial of waiver to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from cars

Posted: 21 Jan 2009 14:14:44
Autos are California's main source of GHG emissions. 

Release 09-05
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 21, 2009
	  	  	
Stanley Young
(916 )322-2990
(916) 956-9409
www.arb.ca.gov

California Air Resources Board asks EPA to reconsider denial of
waiver to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from cars

 

SACRAMENTO: Today, ARB Chairman Mary Nichols sent a letter to
Lisa Jackson, the new designated Administrator of the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), requesting that she
revisit the decision by the previous EPA administrator that
denied California the waiver it needs to enforce its clean car
law.

“We feel strongly that under its new leadership, EPA will
recognize that the decision made by the former administrator to
deny California the waiver to enforce our clean car law was
flawed, factually and legally, in fundamental ways,” said
Nichols.

Should the EPA grant the waiver, California, and 13 other states
will begin a program to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions from
passenger vehicles 30 percent by 2016.

The letter points out that the decision by the previous EPA
administrator improperly evaluated California’s need for
greenhouse gas standards in complete isolation, without also
considering the context of California’s complete motor vehicle
emission control program. This created a new set of hurdles and
test that no other waiver request had triggered.

The letter also indicates that California believes that the EPA
can reconsider its decision in a manner that fulfills its public
notice and comment obligations without undue delay. This is
because the issues to be reconsidered are limited in scope, and
there has already been extensive comment input by stakeholders
and the public on the waiver request.

The letter can be found at:
http://www.arb.ca.gov/newsrel/arbwaiverrequest.pdf

Background:

The regulations in question were developed under California’s
2002 landmark vehicle greenhouse gas emissions reduction law AB
1493 (Pavley). ARB adopted the regulations in 2005.

In 2005, ARB requested a waiver from the EPA to enforce the
regulation, as required under the Clean Air Act. Despite the fact
that no waiver had ever been denied over a 40-year-period, the
then Administrator of the EPA sent Governor Schwarzenegger a
letter in December, 2007, indicating he had denied the waiver.

On March 6, 2008 the waiver denial was formally issued in the
Federal Register.  Governor Schwarzenegger and several other
states immediately filed suit against the federal government to
reverse that decision.

To date, 13 states have also adopted, and three others are in
the process of adopting, those same regulations. Together,
California and these 16 states constitute close to half of the
nation’s new vehicle sales.

The letter also indicates that since all manufacturers can
already comply with California’s 2009 model-year greenhouse gas
fleet average under the regulations, all manufacturers would
obtain credits for future years. This would allow the regulations
to be implemented as planned using the model-year 2009 to 2016
timetable.

The reductions achieved by the Pavley regulations constitute an
important element of the California’s plan to reduce greenhouse
gas emissions 30 percent by 2020 under its landmark global
warming bill, AB 32 (Nunez, 2006). ARB approved the Scoping Plan
in December. It is the nation’s first comprehensive approach to
address climate change that draws upon ever sector of the state’s
economy.


The Air Resources Board is a department of the California
Environmental Protection Agency. ARB's mission is to promote and
protect public health, welfare, and ecological resources through
effective reduction of air pollutants while recognizing and
considering effects on the economy. The ARB oversees all air
pollution control efforts in California to attain and maintain
health based air quality standards.

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