New EPA Head to Take a Fresh Look State CO2 Waivers

According to technologyreview.com, Barak Obama's new EPA head, Lisa Jackson, made clear in her Senate confimation yesterday that state CO2 waivers are back on the table:

"Jackson, formerly New Jersey's top environmental regulator, pledged in a Senate confirmation hearing yesterday that she would "immediately revisit" whether to allow states to set their own CO2 emissions limits on automobiles.

The CO2 tailpipe standards at issue were set by California in 2004 and subsequently adopted by 18 other states. They are more stringent than the tightened Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards approved by Congress in December 2007. Federal courts rejected auto industry challenges against the tougher state standards, but Bush's EPA rode to the rescue by denying California (and by extension its partner states) a federal waiver needed to implement the rules. Jackson, if confirmed by the Senate, will have the power to immediately take an obstructionist EPA off the road. This could have a significant impact on technology development, given that minimal innovation is required to meet the tightened CAFE standards."

Should Obama Take the EPA Off the Road? [Techologyreview.com via Talkingpointsmemo.com]