Strasbourg, 24/10/2007 (Agence Europe) - European Parliament is in favour of binding legislation in order to get car manufacturers to reduce CO2 emissions from new cars more that are put on the EU market. It intends to give more time than that planned by the Commission to reach the first binding target through engine technology alone. At the same time, MEPs now want more long term target to do better.
With a show of hands, the own initiative report by British Liberal Chris Davies on the revised CO2 emissions strategy for private cars and new vans in the EU, was adopted by the European Parliament. This decision favours the setting up of a directive for an obligatory average target of 125 grams of C02/km for European cars by 2015. The Parliament is subsequently calling for a stricter value limit than that envisaged by the European Commission for car manufacturers and changes the deadline for respecting this value limit (the European Commission is planning on an objective of 130 grams/km by using other factors such as bio-carburants in petrol, tyre improvement, innovation in air-condition systems etc.)
MEPs support the observation by the rapporteur that, “despite the fact that technology is there to make a significant difference in a short period of time, industry has stalled in reducing CO2 emissions”. This does not, however, mean getting rid of ambitious long term objectives for a sector which we know is contributing to 19% of all CO2 emissions in the EU. Parliament is recommending that as part of the second binding step, average emissions should not exceed 95g CO2/km by 2020 then 70g/km, indeed less by 2025 (as the environment committee is calling for). These objectives should be set by 2016 at the latest, say MEPs.
Exemptions will be included. MEPs also recognise that some specialist manufacturers could have difficulties in reducing the average limit numbers in the cars they build. The report underlines in this respect the importance of authorising certain specific vehicles to exceed emissions ceilings in order to avoid excessive perturbations on the car market. Parliament believes that each manufactures should have the right to exclude 500 identified vehicles annually from included in the data used to determine average emissions.
MEPs also supported Chris Davies' proposal to introduce Carbon Allowance Reduction Systems (CARS) by 2011. This is a market mechanism that will impose penalties on car makers for exceeding authorised emissions, penalties could be offset by redeemable credits awarded to newly registered passenger cars of the same manufacturer whose emissions are lower than the value limits.
On the other hand, low emission cars, such as hydrogen, vehicles will benefit from a credit system. Each of these cars introduced before the first year of the CARS implementation will be counted in the emissions monitoring procedure (such as the equivalent to forty conventional vehicles, suggests Parliament.
Very disappointed by the vote at Parliament, the Greens/EFA criticised the adoption of an amendment from the centre right (proposed by Conservatives and British Liberals) in favour of a CO2 emissions limit that is less strict for cars and new vans, combined with a three year postponement for its application. Claude Turmes the Luxembourg Green exclaimed, “today's result is a massive setback for overall EU climate policy”. The Greens/EFA group criticised the fact that parliament had defied the results of a public study published last week (EUROPE 9527) showing that only the introduction of strict emissions values, as soon as possible would enable the car sector to reach the overall EU climate target: a reduction of 20% of its emissions by 2020. the Transport & Environment NGO stressed that125g CO2 by 2012 and 20% less than the 130g/km is 40% less ambitious than the EU's current target of 120g by 2012 and 20% lower than the 130g/km up to 2012 as proposed by the Commission in February. (A.N.)