Driving down our carbon footprint

Citizen support could prove key in push for clean cars

By 2020, New Hampshire could cut the carbon footprint from our cars and trucks by 11 percent. That’s one measure of the environmental benefits we could expect to see if our state adopts the Clean Cars Program, a plan to reduce pollution from automobiles and put more high-tech, fuel-efficient cars on the road.

We’ve advocated for the program for years, making our first major push in Concord in 2003. We came up against heavy opposition from automakers, who sank millions into fighting the Clean Cars Program in state capitals across America. But, today, with increasing public support for measures to cut global warming emissions, as well as record demand for efficient and hybrid vehicles, we’ve put our efforts into overdrive.

Laying the groundwork
This summer, Environment New Hampshire’s outreach staff educated 20,000 New Hampshire citizens about the Clean Cars Program, building strong citizen support for our plan and collecting 7,000 petition signatures urging Gov. John Lynch to adopt the program.

Already, 16 states have adopted the Clean Cars Program, which sets strong standards for emissions of toxic air pollutants, promotes advanced-technology vehicles, and establishes fleet-wide limits on the global warming emissions that vehicles are allowed to emit. In New England, New Hampshire is the only state that hasn’t yet adopted the program.

In addition to building strong citizen support for clean cars, we pushed for the state to adopt the program in the media and built up support from community leaders and elected officials. Rep. Paul Hodes commended our outreach staff for their work to bring cleaner cars to the state, calling them the “SWAT team for the environment.”

We still have a long road ahead of us, but the support we’ve built this summer will be critical as we work to convince the governor to bring the Clean Cars Program to New Hampshire in the coming months.