The federal government issued final rules establishing the first greenhouse gas emissions standards for automobiles and light trucks on Thursday, ending a 30-year battle between regulators and automakers.
The new rules, jointly written by the Transportation Department and the Environmental Protection Agency, set emissions and mileage standards that will translate to a fleet average of 35.5 miles a gallon by 2016, nearly a 40 percent improvement over today’s fuel economy.
Officials said the program would save the owner of an average 2016 car $3,000 in fuel costs over the life of the vehicle and eliminate emissions of nearly a billion tons of climate-altering gases over the lives of the regulated vehicles. Reaching the new efficiency level will add about $1,000 to the cost of the average new car by 2016, according to industry and government estimates.
The 2025 Atlantic hurricane season might have at least one more trick up its sleeve.A tropical...
A deadly tornado that tore across North Dakota this summer has been upgraded to an EF-5,...
Thanks to the dire condition of the Earth's coral reefs, the planet has now reached its...
Dr Jane Goodall, who died today at 91, devoted her life to the study and conservation...
