Canada follows California on Emissions Standards

Gas Prices are up and air quality standards reduce gas mileage, but that is not stopping the Canadian Government from pursuing emissions standards similar to those used in California:

Faced with the threat that Canada would adopt tough, California- style rules on auto emissions, major automakers agreed Tuesday to voluntarily reduce the global-warming emissions of cars and light trucks sold north of the border.

Auto industry watchdogs said the deal, signed Tuesday in Windsor, Ontario, by officials of the Canadian government and the nation's automobile industry, could force automakers to adopt similar stringent emissions rules for vehicles sold throughout the United States.

The agreement follows the lead of regulations adopted last November in California, which U.S. automakers -- the same multinational giants that dominate Canada's auto industry -- are seeking to overturn in court.

Tuesday's pact commits the manufacturers to reduce overall greenhouse gas emissions of their vehicles sold in Canada by 5.3 million metric tons -- about 25 percent -- by the end of 2010. In comparison, rules adopted in California oblige automakers to reduce their global-warming emissions by 30 percent, starting in 2009 and culminating in 2016.