Legislation helps clear the air

This environmentally sensible bill adds Maryland to the list of states that have adopted stringent auto emission rules, written by California, that the national Clean Air Act permits states to implement instead of weaker federal standards.

Eleven states so far have adopted the California standards, including Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersey. This year alone, at least three other states are considering similar laws. If Maryland signs on, the benefits for our state will be widely felt.

First, we will see a significant reduction in the amount of gases that contribute to global warming. By 2025, requiring cleaner cars here would lead to a 30 percent reduction in carbon dioxide — about 7.8 million tons a year — the chief contributor to the greenhouse effect.

Second, we would cut the amount of air pollutants that can cause cancer and other serious ailments. A recently released report found Marylanders regularly inhale air containing 40 times the federal threshold level for air toxins. These can lead to cancer, birth defects, neurological damage and respiratory ailments such as asthma. According to the report, the Clean Cars Act could cut such pollution in our air by more than 50 percent. That would have the same impact as eliminating 190,000 cars from our highways and could be achieved with existing technology.

Cleaner cars will also reduce the amount of vehicle emissions that eventually end up in the Chesapeake Bay and other Maryland waterways. Almost one-third of the nitrogen pollution in the Bay comes from airborne sources and cars are a major contributor to that production of nitrogen. The Clean Cars Act will enhance our Bay restoration effort.

Finally, lower vehicle emissions will help reduce the smog that plagues many areas of the state.

Any modest increase in the cost of automobiles possibly resulting from the stiffer standards will be more than made up by lower operating costs for drives.

The Clean Cars Act has the O’Malley administration’s support and was approved by the House of Delegates on Tuesday. Although it was approved by the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee last week, it still faces strong opposition in the Senate.

Some critics — including The Gazette — have argued that we should postpone a decision and study the vehicle emission problem further. But 11 states have already studied the matter, as has the Maryland Department of the Environment. This legislation is overdue. It should be passed without any more delay.

Brian E. Frosh, a Democrat from Bethesda, represents District 16 in the state Senate, where he also is chairman of the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee and Senate sponsor of the Clean Cars Act.