CO2 : Faut-il taxer les émissions automobiles excessives?

UK Liberal MEP Chris Davies said that his proposed market mechanism (CARS) would make the EU's emission-reduction scheme “cost-neutral” to the industry as a whole. 

Regarding his controversial proposal to limit cars' speed, Davies said: "Cars designed to go at stupid speeds have to be built to withstand the effects of a crash at those speeds. They are heavier than necessary, less fuel efficient and produce too many emissions. At a time when Europe is worried about its energy security it is sheer lunacy to approve the sale of gas guzzling cars designed to travel at dangerous speeds that the law does not permit." 

As regards advertising, he added: "We give information to smokers about the effects of cigarettes, so why should we not insist that carmakers provide customers with more information about emissions from the vehicles they sell?" 

The car manufacturers’ lobby ACEA welcomed the fact that Davies' report recognises the need for sufficient lead-time for the European automotive but says that his proposed targets for CO2 emission reductions "are far too stringent". 

It also criticises Davies' focus on vehicle technology alone, saying that a combination of efforts could achieve better and more cost-effective results for the environment, the industry and society as a whole. 

The group terms Davies' suggestions to ban certain types of cars and limit the speed of cars as "political symbolism" and calls for more realism. It adds: "The contribution biofuels can make is much more substantial because a 1% penetration of biofuels already means a reduction of 5 gCO2/per km for the average fleet performance." 

Infrastructure adjustments, eco-driving, fleet renewal and CO2-related taxation, to shape the demand for and the use of cars, would also contribute significantly, it states, stressing that EU policy must address all these factors. 

Green NGO T&E (European Federation for Transport and Environment) told EurActiv that it "fundamentally disagrees" with the notion, voiced by Davies in his report, that it would be "too costly" to achieve the reductions by 2012. "The off-the-shelf technology necessary to make the cuts is already available now," stressed T&E Communications Officer Dudley Curtis. He added: "By 2012, carmakers will have already known about the 12g/km target for basically 17 years so the idea that they need longer is crazy." 

He nevertheless welcomed the return to the '120g/km through technological improvements alone' target, saying that Europe needs a transparent system. He added that Davies' proposed CARS system could maybe help to provide the penalties and the incentives needed to convince manufacturers to comply with targets. 

The UK motoring guide 'Clean Green Cars' has issued a study rebutting the argument that manufacturers need longer implementation periods. 

The study looks at emissions from all model ranges in each class of car currently on sale (ranging from 'supermini' and medium cars to luxury sports and off-road vehicles) and concludes that, if all cars were brought up to the level of the most efficient in their category, average emissions from the automotive industry would already drop to 140.8 g/km rather than the current 162g/km. 

"There is no reason why manufacturers cannot follow best practice. If for example, the Toyota Aygo, Peugeot 107 and Citroen C1 can all manage an average of 109 g/km, why do some model ranges of the same size have an average figure of up to 149 g/km? At the other extreme, if the Ford Galaxy range has an average of 171 g/km, why do some multi-purpose vehicles have a figure of well over 200 g/km?" the study asks.