St. Norbert Times

Issue date: 2/9/09 Section: Opinion

Media Credit: Samantha Christian

Ah, there's nothing like a breath of fresh air. Yes, fresh, auto emission-y air.
Last week, President Obama asked the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to reconsider California's loose auto emissions regulations. Apparently, the state believes it is powerful enough (with it being the largest state in the U.S.) to create and follow its own set of rules in order to maintain its auto industries. Unfortunately, due to the rapid utilization of oil by automobile industries, our environment and health are at risk.

"What we're seeing is exactly what we saw before," notes Wendy Scattergood, Assistant Professor of Political Science. "In the 1970's Israel stopped giving us oil, so we had to start using unleaded gas. But before that, all we had was leaded fuel, which gave us the same fears auto emissions are giving us now."

These fears include: air pollutants, respiratory problems and numerous chemicals floating into our water systems. Unfortunately, auto manufacturers aren't exactly thrilled with stricter regulations, as they would have to either cut production or restructure the way production occurs. But, as Scattergood informed me, we don't really rely more or less on oil now than we ever have before.

"We used oil for different things back in the 1970s. Natural gas is now commonly used for heating, but back then, we used oil. Now, our dependence on oil is strictly centered on the auto industry."

A point well made. So then, what's motivating the car companies to keep pushing for looser emission regulations? Don't they understand that if they don't lessen their dependency on this wonderful resource, they're going to start hurting even more as they suck the supply dry? This is another yes and no type of answer. In order to seriously cut back on oil, car companies would have to figure out how to recreate their production system, which they feel is too large of an investment for them to continue as businesses.

Here's the kicker: the complainers are the "Big Three" car companies - Ford, GM, and Chrysler. While they whine about not getting their needs met and having to cut back, Toyota, Honda, and the smaller car manufacturers are sitting quietly on the sidelines, giggling. Why? Scattergood used the Toyota Prius as a good example. The Prius was sold to the American consumer below production costs. "Toyota essentially took a loss in order to get the American people used to it," Scattergood explained, "and that's because the smaller companies like Toyota and Honda have already made the production switch." Thus, since they don't use as much oil, there won't be an increase in panic and heart attacks as stricter auto emission rules are set in place.

Continued...

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