The Heritage Foundation has expressed support for the Trump administration’s recent proposal to rescind a key greenhouse gas finding that serves as the foundation for various emissions standards, including those governing vehicles under the Clean Air Act. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) introduced the proposal at the same time as the Department of Energy released a review of greenhouse gas emissions that cited research from The Heritage Foundation.
Diana Furchtgott-Roth, former deputy assistant secretary for research and technology at the U.S. Department of Transportation and director of The Heritage Foundation’s Center for Energy, Climate, and Environment, commented on the significance of this development. “The implications are profound. If adopted, the proposal would ensure consumer choice of vehicles and help with affordability, performance, and safety. For years, transportation has been the linchpin of climate regulation. If the justification for regulating greenhouse gases from vehicles collapses, the rationale for regulating other sectors, such as power plants, is even weaker.”
According to The Heritage Foundation, reversing these regulations could lead to significant economic benefits by saving Americans billions of dollars and reducing deaths and injuries on roads while also promoting economic growth. Their research suggests that although climate change is happening, its effects are often overstated and should not be used as grounds for widespread energy regulation in industries like automotive manufacturing.
Dr. Kevin Dayaratna, chief statistician and director of Heritage’s Center for Data Analysis, added: “In the context of the automotive industry, especially, CO2 has a trifling effect on global temperatures. Our analysis at The Heritage Foundation has shown that even if all CO2 emissions from the US automotive industry are averted, there would be less than 0.05 degrees Celsius global temperature impact by the end of the century.
“All the policymakers in the past have pursued policies regarding the regulation of GHGs for automobiles which do nothing besides require the industry to operate within the confines of rules devised by regulators and bureaucrats in Washington D.C., that will have essentially no impact on the climate.”
Dayaratna’s book Cooling the Climate Hysteria compiles papers by researchers examining what they describe as exaggerations about climate change impacts. The publication questions some assumptions behind current climate models and discusses both potential risks and possible benefits associated with moderate warming and increased carbon dioxide levels.
The Heritage Foundation calls on policymakers to move away from selective research practices and instead use comprehensive assessments when shaping environmental regulations.
