Debating the fuel-efficiency detour.

Rollback will cost consumers plenty and increase pollution

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will roll back fuel-efficiency standards for cars and light trucks that were agreed to by the auto industry six years ago. EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt declared the standards too tough to meet — but didn’t provide any evidence.

Don’t be fooled by claims that less-efficient vehicles save money. It’s patently false. The EPA’s shortsighted favor to the oil industry at the expense of average American families will hurt U.S. consumers, damage our position in the competitive global clean-energy economy and put our fragile environment at risk.

The 2012 standards required automakers to increase mileage per gallon to 54.5 by 2025. Driving farther on a tank of gas plainly saves money over the long haul. It also insulates consumers from fuel price spikes like the one in 2008, when gas prices went to $4.11 a gallon. Plus we can all agree that it is in our national interest to reduce our dependence on foreign oil by cutting U.S. oil consumption.

So why would the Trump administration and Pruitt kill standards that would save 12 billion barrels over the life of the vehicles?

Unfortunately, Pruitt has a reputation for ethical lapses and cozy relationships with oil and gas interests. Pruitt has squandered taxpayer money on first-class flights and a soundproof booth in his office, and gave big raises to young staffers, and he now faces an inquiry over a sweetheart deal on a Capitol Hill condo rental from the wife of an energy lobbyist.

We can and should do better in our politics and policy. With current standards, a family with a new 2025 gas vehicle would pay $1 per gallon less over the car’s life and slash carbondioxide pollution by about 6 billion tons. That’s important, since U.S. carbon-dioxide emissions from transportation have surpassed emissions from electricity generation. Who doesn’t want to save money and reduce dangerous air pollution?

Also, Florida is ground zero for the impacts of climate change, such as sea-level rise. Better gas mileage is key to moving to a cleaner energy future. Reality is, automakers already have to meet the 2025 standard for vehicles sold in California and 11 other states — with the practical impact of leaving 38 states with older-vehicle technology. Plus forcing a dozen states to comply with weaker regulations will be met with costly and protracted litigation.

Meanwhile, the rest of the world will move forward on more efficient gas vehicles and zero-emission electric vehicles. The European Union, China, India, South Korea and Japan all have more stringent fuel-economy standards right now. By going backward while the rest of the world plows forward, U.S. car manufacturers will be less competitive. By 2030, Norway and the Netherlands will restrict new vehicles to electric or plug-in hybrid models, with Scotland following suit in 2032. By 2040, France and Britain will phase out fossil-fuel vehicles. China has a requirement that zero-emission vehicles make up 12 percent of new car sales by 2020.

Why pay more to benefit the oil industry? The University of Michigan’s Transportation Research Institute finds electric vehicles cost less than half as much to operate as gasoline-powered cars. With fewer moving parts, no exhaust system, less need for cooling, less abrasive braking options, and no need to change oil, fan belts, air filters, timing belts, head gaskets, cylinder heads and spark plugs, maintenance costs are lower. The 10 most efficient vehicles in America are electric. Lifetime emissions of electric vehicles are less than 50 percent of a traditional car but easily combined with renewables like wind and solar can be virtually zero emissions.

It’s just plain dumb to retreat on designing and building more efficient vehicles, but it’s practically sinister to rob our children and grandchildren of the clean energy future they deserve.

It’s practically sinister to rob our children and grandchildren of the clean energy future they deserve.

Susan Glickman is the Florida director of the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy.