Obama announces new rules to reduce emissions

US president Barack Obama has proposed new legislation that would clean up gas and reduce emissions from car exhausts, it has been announced.

The new rules are intended to severely cut smog, soot and dangerous emissions from vehicles, as well as making it easier for the auto industry to meet tougher standards for tailpipe emissions from new cars.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), this move will also help the US meet global standards, and refineries in Europe, Japan and California are already working towards lower sulphur standards.

The EPA’s acting administrator, Bob Perciasepe, commented: "The Obama administration has taken a series of steps to reinvigorate the auto industry and ensure that the cars of tomorrow are cleaner, more efficient and saving drivers money at the pump.”

As part of the new rules, refiners would have to cut gasoline sulphur levels by more than 60 per cent, bringing it down to ten parts per million by 2017. If this milestone was achieved, it would bring new cars in line with standards adopted by California’s clean cars programme.

Furthermore, the new standards would also have public health benefits, the EPA highlighted, as currently around one-third of Americans live in neighbourhoods which suffer from air pollution that exceeds government limits.

Mr Perciasepe added: "Today's proposed standards – which will save thousands of lives and protect the most vulnerable – are the next step in our work to protect public health and will provide the automotive industry with the certainty they need to offer the same car models in all 50 states.”

New rules on gasoline sulphur had initially been expected in 2011. However, they were delayed so they would not harm Obama’s re-election prospects.

Campaign groups were found to be very much in support of the move, while refinery groups warned that the new rules would add almost ten cents to the cost of a gallon of gas.