Statement: Trump administration rollback of California clean cars standards also hurts Pennsylvania

Repealing pollution standards will have irreparable consequences for public health, environment

PennEnvironment Research & Policy Center

[Philadelphia, PA] — The Trump Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is announcing a plan today to strip away California’s authority to implement stronger car pollution safeguards than the federal government. This proposal comes at a time when two in three Americans say the United States needs to do more on climate change and several leading automakers already have agreed to follow California’s tougher emissions standards. Moreover, Pennsylvania is one of 13 states who have opted into these stricter standards.

In response, the PennEnvironment Research & Policy Center’s Climate Campaign Director Flora Cardoni released the following statement:

“As Pennsylvanians’ awareness of climate change–and our determination to do something about it–have grown, the Commonwealth, along with a dozen other states, adopted California’s emissions control regulations. Transportation is the highest source of greenhouse gas pollution in the nation, threatening our air, health, and climate. Pennsylvania needs more options to combat global warming and air pollution, not fewer. “This rollback is an attack on Pennsylvania’s freedom to protect the health of our people and ensure that future generations have a livable climate.

“Instead of thwarting states’ efforts to limit climate pollution, the federal government should be making it easier to fight this existential crisis. Or even better, we should institute stronger national standards so states don’t have to devise their own. When America’s major automakers are willing to comply with California emissions rules, it’s clear that this administration will be on the wrong side of history.”

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PennEnvironment  Research & Policy Center is dedicated to protecting our air, water and open spaces. We investigate problems, craft solutions, educate the public and decision-makers, and help the public make their voices heard in local, state and national debates over the quality of our environment and our lives. www.pennenvironmentcenter.org.