Global Warming

Decision Could Boost Prospects for North Carolina Clean Cars Program

Raleigh, NC—In a landmark decision in one of the most important environmental cases ever heard by the Supreme Court, the Court ruled today that the Clean Air Act gives the U.S. EPA the authority to regulate carbon dioxide and other global warming pollutants from cars.

“This decision is a major turning point in our nation’s fight to protect future generations from global warming,” said Elizabeth Ouzts, Environment North Carolina director.  “North Carolina can now put more solutions to use in fighting global warming,” Ouzts continued.

The Court ordered the U.S. EPA to reconsider its decision not to regulate carbon dioxide emissions from cars.  The ruling will have major implications for rules to reduce global warming pollution from cars.  Under the Clean Air Act, states may adopt California’s tailpipe emissions standards—the Clean Cars Program—in lieu of minimum federal standards.  Ten states have adopted California’s standards to reduce fleet-wide global warming emissions from new vehicles by 25 percent in model year 2009, rising to 30 percent in model year 2016.

Reps. Pricey Harrison and Martha Alexander and Sens. Dan Clodfelter and Martin Nesbitt, along with other North Carolina lawmakers, have filed legislation three sessions in a row to adopt the Clean Cars Program.  The measure has stalled, in part, because of legal uncertainty about whether greenhouse gases can be regulated as air pollutants.  While two other cases challenging state Clean Cars Programs are still pending before federal courts, today’s decision makes it much more likely that the courts will ultimately uphold state Clean Cars Programs.

“The court’s decision gives a boost to our efforts to bring cleaner cars to North Carolina,” said Rep. Pricey Harrison, lead sponsor of House Bill 1179.

Environment North Carolina’s federal advocacy office is a petitioner in the case. along with a coalition of states, cities, and environmental organizations.  For a complete list of the petitioners and other documents related to the case, go to www.cleancarscampaign.org and click on “Court Action.”  For more information about North Carolina Clean Cars bills H 1179 and S 1307, visit www.EnvironmentNorthCarolina.org/clean-air/clean-cars.

In another critical environmental decision, the Supreme Court also ruled 9-0 against Duke Energy, arguing that industrial facilities should install modern pollution controls when upgrading their plants.  Click here for the news release.