How About CO2 Emissions Labels for New Cars and Light Trucks?

As of September 1, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) newly designed window sticker has appeared on new cars, light trucks and SUVs. It includes the estimated annual cost of fueling the vehicle, the expected city and highway driving range, and how the fuel economy of a particular vehicle compares to others within its class, and a website link where consumers can go to for more information.

While most changes are mostly cosmetic, adding the combined fuel economy and displaying the estimated annual fuel cost more prominently, the numbers used in the sticker have changed significantly. After years of criticism for inaccurate estimates of fuel economy, the EPA is using new methods which account for today’s faster highway speeds, people’s tendency to accelerate faster, and the effects of using air conditioning or operating the vehicle in cold weather.

But there’s a very significant indicator that’s still missing from the label: a vehicle’s annual global warming emissions. Americans are becoming increasingly concerned about climate change but still don’t connect it with their purchasing decisions and everyday behaviors. Including this information on the label would clearly inform potential vehicle buyers about their contribution to climate change.

For every gallon of gas burned, a car produces roughly 20 pounds of CO2. The average car (in terms of fuel economy) driven the average number of miles per year (15,000) produces approximately 13,000 pounds of CO2 annually.

The non-profit, Resources for the Future, has designed a global warming performance label that includes the estimated amount of CO2 (in pounds) produced annually for each vehicle make and model and also places cars and light trucks into five distinct groups based on different categories of estimated annual CO2 emissions – from “best” to “worst.” This would allow a prospective purchaser to view information about CO2 emissions for each vehicle and easily make comparisons among alternatives.

Countries in the European Union have been required to display estimated CO2 emissions on new cars since January 2001. A California law enacted in 2005 requires similar information, along with smog emissions, be displayed starting in 2009 model cars sold in the state.

The EPA could get ahead of the curve by requiring a uniform CO2 emissions label on all cars and light trucks sold in the United States. Or (god forbid), automobile manufacturers could decide to voluntarily display this information.

See the proposed labels:
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