Archived press release

EU targets for greener cars too weak

7 February 2007

Motor industry failing to face up to climate change

New European mandatory standards aimed at cutting carbon dioxide emissions from new cars do not go far enough, Friends of the Earth said today (Wednesday). The announcement follows fierce lobbying from the motor industry.

The European Commission proposed today that by 2012 new cars sold in Europe must on average emit no more than 130 grammes of carbon dioxide per kilometre (g/km CO2). (about 51 mg for a petrol car, 58 for diesel). This is considerably weaker than a target the EU set in the mid 1990s calling for new cars to emit on average 120g/km by 2012.

Friends of the Earth's transport campaigner,Tony Bosworth said:

The motor industry has failed to take its environmental responsibilities seriously and is a long way short of meeting a voluntary target (it agreed with the EU) that that on average new cars sold in the EU in 2008/9 should emit no more than 140 grammes of carbon dioxide per kilometre (g/km CO2).

• Average emissions from new cars sold in the EU in 2005 were 162g/km CO2.

• In the UK, average emissions of new cars sold in 2006 were 167.2g/km CO2. In 2005, the UK had the fourth highest average emissions of the EU15 countries. To meet the 2008 target in the UK, average emissions from new cars must fall by more in the next two years than they have in the last nine years.

In 1996 the EU agreed a Community Strategy to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from passenger cars. The aim was to reduce the average emissions from new cars sold in the EU to 120g/km CO2 by 2010 at the latest. This represented a 35% improvement over 1995 emissions levels and would mean petrol cars averaging around 56mpg and diesel cars around 62mpg. The objective was to be reached by a combination of technical and fiscal measures, and consumer information.

In the late 1990s car manufacturers reached an agreement with the EU to reduce the average emissions of new cars sold in the EU to 140 g/km CO2 by 2008/09. This represented a reduction in emissions of around 25% in a decade. This is a voluntary agreement and so there are no penalties on the industry or individual manufacturers for not complying.

Official monitoring data from the EU has been severely delayed, but analysis of car sales data for Brussels-based lobby group Transport & Environment (T&E) shows that progress to date has not been good, and that car manufacturers are not on track to meet their commitments. By 2005, average emissions from new cars sold had only been reduced to 162g/km CO2. The annual rate of improvement between 2004 and 2005 was one per cent. To meet its target, the car industry will have to improve fuel economy and reduce emissions from their vehicles at unprecedented rate, three to four times that which has been achieved in recent years.

In the UK, average emissions of new cars sold in 2006 were 167.2g/km CO2. In 2005, the UK had the fourth highest average emissions of the EU15 countries. To meet the 2008 target in the UK, average emissions from new cars must fall by more in the next two years than they have in the last nine years.

This slow rate of progress has forced the Government to reduce the carbon savings expected from these measures. In its 2000 Climate Change Programme, the package of measures including the EU agreement on reducing CO2 from cars, graduated road tax for cars and the reform of company car taxation was expected to reduce carbon emissions in 2010 by 4MtC. In the revised programme published last year, this figure had been reduced by over 40% to 2.3MtC.

Research carried out for the Department for Transport has shown that measures to improve the fuel efficiency of cars could make the single biggest contribution to cutting carbon dioxide emissions from surface transport in the UK.

Friends of the Earth believes there are three reasons why the current voluntary agreement has failed:

• There are no penalties for failure to comply

  Rates of progress at the EU level vary hugely between manufacturers. Recent figures show that only three of the top 20 car brands (Fiat, Citroen and Peugeot) are on course to meet the 140 g/km target and seven brands (Volkswagen, BMW, Volvo, Audi, Mazda, Nissan and Suzuki) have made less than half of the progress they should have made by 2005 on a steady reduction path. Despite this, there have been no penalties on those brands which have failed to meet interim targets - an inevitable consequence of a voluntary agreement.

• The incentives for consumers are too small

  The current system of Vehicle Excise Duty (VED, or road tax) offers insufficient incentive for consumers to choose smaller, more fuel-efficient cars. The £40 rise in the Budget last year for the least fuel-efficient cars is less than the cost of one tank of petrol for the cars affected, and the Chancellor made no changes to VED in his Pre-Budget Statement.

• Manufacturers are still mainly advertising gas-guzzlers

  Manufacturers, through their advertising, are creating a market for fuel-inefficient cars. Friends of the Earth analysis of car adverts in national newspapers in September 2005 showed that over half (57.6%) of all adverts were for cars in the two most polluting categories (then VED bands E and F, but only 3.1 % were for the cleanest cars (VED bands A and B).

The European Commission has been considering for several months what should replace the current voluntary agreement. In recent months, the indication has been that mandatory targets would be proposed, given growing concern about climate change.

However a statement from the Commission has been postponed and news has emerged of differences of opinion between Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas, who favours a mandatory target of 120g/km, and Enterprise Commissioner Gunther Verheugen who does not.

It appears that the Commission will suggest a target for 2012 of 130g/km CO2. This would represent a weakening of the target agreed in 1996. The Commission will call for the difference to be made up by measures such as biofuels, improved tyres and more efficient air conditioners.

Car manufacturers have lobbied strongly against mandatory standards to be met by vehicle technology alone. German car manufacturers wrote to the European Commission saying that a 120g/km target is `unrealistic', `technically unrealisable' and could make swathes of European industry unviable. The car industry says that proposed targets should be met by an `integrated approach' also involving public authorities, the oil industry and driver education.

One of the signatories of the letter was Ford Europe. Only a few months ago, Lewis Booth, head of Ford Europe, announcing major new investment in environmental technology, said that "climate change is one of the single biggest challenges facing the auto industry" and of Ford's plans "we are not going to introduce just one or two high-profile green cars that sell in relatively low numbers and leave it at that. … By deploying these technologies across the breadth of our product range - mass market and premium products, passenger cars and commercial vehicles - we can deliver far more significant reductions in the total amount of CO 2 generated by our total vehicle fleet"

The UK Government has said that it thinks mandatory targets should be considered. The then Transport Secretary Alistair Darling told the House of Commons "on the present voluntary agreement among European car manufacturers, the time has now come for us to consider mandatory agreements, because not enough progress is being made and most people would expect car manufacturers right across Europe to make cars cleaner than they are at present" . The current Transport Secretary Douglas Alexander has said that he stands by this statement.

The Government has consulted stakeholders on what should follow the current voluntary agreements, seeking opinions on policy options including a further voluntary agreement; a mandatory agreement; including car manufacturers in a future phase of the EU's Emissions Trading Scheme; and doing nothing. This was to inform the Government's discussions with the Commission and other Member States.

The Commission's communication is not a legislative proposal. This is likely to be several months away, with months of further discussions after that. This will mean that the final 2012 target will probably not become law until 2009.

Friends of the Earth believes that the European Union should aim to reduce average emissions to no more than 120 g/km CO2 by 2012. This should be legally-binding with sanctions for non-compliance and incentives to go beyond targets. Manufacturers who don't meet targets should face penalties for non-compliance and those who go beyond their targets should be rewarded for doing so.

It is essential to note that the 120g/km target would be an average for all new cars sold. It does not mean that all cars or all car manufacturers have to meet the target.

The target should be achieved by car manufacturers under the current EU test cycle for measuring CO2 emissions. Thus measures such as better tyres, more efficient air conditioners, using lower carbon fuels and improved driving techniques should be seen as in addition to, rather than part of, meeting the 120 g/km target. Allowing such other measures to contribute towards meeting 120 g/km is, in effect, weakening the target

The 120g/km target is feasible. Some new technology might be needed, but car manufacturers need to make best use of existing technology and stop the move towards bigger, heavier, more powerful cars. Manufacturers claim that this could compromise safety, but the European Transport Safety Council has dismissed this.

Setting a target for 2012 is not the end of the story. Further cuts in vehicle emissions beyond that will be needed, so further clear, ambitious mandatory targets must be set, to give a clear indication of progress needed in the following decade.

Friends of the Earth believes the UK Government should give greater incentives for people to buy more fuel-efficient cars by cutting Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) to zero for cars in VED Band B, such as the Toyota Prius and the Citroen C1; and raising it significantly for cars in the most polluting bands, to a maximum of £2000 a year.

If you're a journalist looking for press information please contact the Friends of the Earth media team on 020 7566 1649.

Published by Friends of the Earth Trust