- Trump says the EPA rollback will save over $1 trillion.
- Carmakers can now build cars without tracking emissions.
- Tesla urged Trump not to repeal the climate finding.
This week, the Trump administration will repeal a scientific finding vital to greenhouse gas emission regulations in the United States, effectively opening the floodgates for car manufacturers to produce vehicles that emit significant amounts into the atmosphere.
In 2009, the Obama administration issued an ‘endangerment finding’ that found that six greenhouse gases pose a threat to public health and welfare. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) used this finding to regulate greenhouse gas emissions.
Read: US Stops Going After People Who Emissions-Delete Diesel Trucks
With this finding repealed, the EPA will “lack statutory authority under Section 202(a) of the Clean Air Act (CAA) to prescribe standards for certain motor vehicle emissions,” CNBC reports. This means car companies can build and sell vehicles without measuring, reporting, certifying, or complying with greenhouse gas emission standards.
This will be a boon for America’s fossil fuel industry. According to the Trump administration, the rollback will deliver more than $1 trillion in regulatory cuts and could reduce the average cost of a new vehicle by $2,400. However, as we’ve come to expect from lawmakers, little clarity has been provided on how it arrived at these numbers.
Democrats Respond
Unsurprisingly, the news hasn’t gone over well with Democrats. Speaking on the Senate floor earlier this week, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer described it as a giveaway to the fossil fuel industry.
“Let’s be very clear what this announcement represents: it is a corrupt giveaway to Big Oil, plain and simple,” he said. “The blast radius of this reckless decision will span from San Diego to Portland, Maine, and from Seattle to Miami.”
Last September, Tesla wrote a letter to the Trump administration urging it not to dismiss the scientific finding. Evidently, Elon Musk didn’t factor in the possibility of this happening when he decided to throw his support behind Donald Trump for the presidency, donating over $250 million to his campaign.
“The Endangerment Finding – and the vehicle emissions standards which flow from it – have provided a stable regulatory platform for Tesla’s extensive investments in product development and production,” Tesla said. “Reversing the Endangerment Finding would also deprive consumers of choice and extensive economic benefits, have negative effects on human health, and further impact the integrated North American automotive sector.”
