Arizona Starts to Cut Greenhouse Gases From Vehicles

In an attempt to limit this growth, the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality has begun its formal rulemaking process to adopt a clean car program with new standards to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from passenger vehicles, ADEQ Director Steve Owens announced today.

The new rules are being developed pursuant to an Executive Order on climate change issued last year by Governor Janet Napolitano.

The Arizona Climate Change Advisory Group unanimously recommended that Arizona adopt the new greenhouse gas reduction standards.

If unchecked, Arizona's greenhouse gas emissions are projected to grow by 140 percent between 1990-2020 and by 200 percent between 1990-2040. Roughly 40 percent of Arizona's greenhouse gas emissions come from vehicles.

A small section of a 30 mile long traffic jam in Arizona (Photo credit unknown)

"Our goal is to have a formal draft rule proposed for public comment by the end of this year or early next year, and to have the final rule approved by late spring or early summer," he said.

The rules will apply to vehicles beginning with the 2011 model year.

Arizona's rules will be based on the Clean Car program adopted by the state of California.

States are authorized under the federal Clean Air Act to adopt California's vehicle emissions standards once the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has issued a waiver that allows California to escape the bonds of the more lax federal rules. The EPA has been withholding that waiver, and earlier this month the state of California sued the federal agency to force issuance of the waiver.

EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson told the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works in June, "EPA is following two separate tracks for the consideration of greenhouse gas regulations for motor vehicles."

"As I have previously indicated in Congressional testimony," said Johnson, "EPA is working with its interagency partners to develop a proposed rule for the federal regulation of emissions of greenhouse gases from new motor vehicles. After considering public input through a notice and comment process, it is our intention to issue a final rule by the end of 2008."

"Separately, EPA is considering California's waiver request for its motor vehicle greenhouse gas regulation, under the statutory waiver authority provided in section 209 of the Clean Air Act," Johnson said.

California claims the EPA is deliberately stalling.

In addition to California, 11 other states have adopted the California greenhouse gas vehicle standards. They are Connecticut, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington.

Along with Arizona, at least four other states - Colorado, Florida, New Mexico and Utah - also have announced plans to adopt the California greenhouse gas vehicle standards.

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