By IANS
New Delhi : The government must establish mandatory fuel efficiency standards for automobiles and manufacturers must label each car’s contribution to global warming, environmental NGO Greenpeace demanded here today.
Two days before the start of the high profile Auto Expo exhibition in the capital, Greenpeace announced that it would soon launch a campaign to improve energy efficiency in the automobile sector.
“The transportation sector in India today accounts for up to 18 percent of India’s total carbon dioxide emissions, and is the second largest consumer of energy,” said Soumyabrata Rahut of Greenpeace.
Carbon dioxide emissions are largely responsible for global warming.
“Automobile manufacturers pass their vehicles off as green by following European emission standards. But only toxic pollutants and not carbon dioxide emissions are factored in these emissions norms. The more fuel a vehicle guzzles, the more carbon dioxide emissions it is responsible for,” Rahut said.
“The onus is on the manufacturers to deploy advanced technology to drastically reduce emissions. As a first step, manufacturers must label their cars and disclose information about the contribution of their vehicles to climate change,” he added.
The carbon dioxide emission labelling must be mandatory, Greenpeace demanded.
“Plus, the Indian government must set mandatory carbon dioxide emission standards for the industry, which will require car manufacturers to progressively reduce emissions from new cars.”
“Fuel efficiency is a win-win-win. It saves money for the consumer, reduces the nation’s oil import bill and furthers efforts to mitigate climate change. There is no time to waste and no reason for the manufacturers and the government to delay action,” said Rahut.