THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, December 20, 1994 TAG: 9412200306
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: WASHINGTON LENGTH: Medium: 54 lines
The Environmental Protection Agency approved tough new pollution controls Monday similar to those in California for cars and small trucks sold in the East from Virginia to Maine.
``We are pleased that the EPA has successfully completed this step towards getting cleaner air in our region,'' said Timothy Keeney, the commissioner of the Ozone Transport Commission, a group of state environmental officials, and head of the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection.
Under the plan, which still requires approval by the individual states, cars whose emissions are 70 percent cleaner than today's new cars would be sold in Virginia, Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont and the District of Columbia, according to the EPA.
The decision is something of a setback for the automobile industry, which has fought a regional approach to pollution controls.
But in her announcement, EPA Administrator Carol Browner also endorsed a broader plan supported by the automakers and left the door open to its eventual approval.
Under the industry proposal, cars that produce less pollution than now, though more than the amount permitted by California, would be sold in all 49 states other than California. It would override regional requirements.
``We believe this broader agreement would be the most sensible and cost-effective way of bringing clean air to Americans,'' Browner said in a statement.
According to the American Automobile Manufacturers Association, the Ozone Transport Commission's proposal to cut noxious auto emissions would add about $800 to the price of a new car when the plan goes into effect with the 1999 model year. Controls for the 49-state approach would add $576 to the cost of a car, the association said.
The EPA says it can't demand a clean-air plan to mandate the sale of electric cars, but it will not block any Northeastern states that want to require the vehicles.
New York and Massachusetts have laws requiring automakers to sell electric, emission-free cars by the end of the decade, but they are being challenged in court by the car manufacturers.
Under the commission's plan, smog-causing tailpipe pollutants of every car and small truck sold in the region by 2003 would be sharply reduced. Federal law requires the states to clean up the air or risk losing millions of dollars in transportation aid.
KEYWORDS: EMISSIONS POLLUTION AUTOMOBILES EPA by CNB