The Canadian government is at last approaching the subject of vehicle emissions a little more seriously. In an article from the Globe and Mail, the Federal government has predicted that it will cost Canada’s auto makers, fuel suppliers and drivers almost $13-billion to meet greenhouse gas emission standards over the next six years.
We are also going to see renewable fuel regulations as of September 1, 2010 which are great, but they too will be costly. There is going to be a mandatory 5-per-cent ethanol content in gasoline which is going to cost roughly $3.2-billion.
Auto manufacturers will incur (well this is a first) $3.7-billion in added costs from the 2011-2016 standards out of a total price tag of $4.2-billion. At last, they will be carrying a bigger burden in terms of fuel standards and making their vehicles more efficient.
Vehicle emission standards are no doubt expensive. As we continue to manufacture vehicles, pass legislation and see a concomitant rise in gasoline prices, one would figure that driving (or to buy a car) can be costly. The Transportation sector is a huge emitter of carbon dioxide. 27 per cent of the country’s greenhouse gas emissions are produced by cars, trucks, trains, ships and aircraft.
These new standards will definitely alleviate the emissions output of motor vehicles and perhaps provide a logical reason to explore other innovative transportation options i.e. High Speed Rail.
Environment Canada is confident that the "benefits of better fuel economy will exceed costs by three to one, including $9.7-billion in fuel savings which, officials said, will more than make up for higher vehicle prices. It calculated motorists will recover their added upfront costs in a year and a half"
For some links on vehicle emissions see below:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emission_standard
http://www.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/auto-auto.nsf/eng/am01205.html
http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/sectors/automotive/environment/financial/index_en.htm
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