Auto Executives Respond to Calls for New Fuel Economy Standards; Climate Report Urges Fuel, Vehicle Changes

摘要

While former U.S. Vice President Al Gore was testifying on climate change before Congressional committees last week, auto industry officials were commenting on fuel efficiency proposals offered as solutions for slowing global warming. Executives at the world's leading automotive companies went on record generally opposing Congressionally mandated tighter corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) standards, even though some, especially Toyota, reiterated its commitment to address climate change by increasing fuel efficiency, much as a report by the United Nations Foundation and the scientific society Sigma Xi recommends.