For Immediate Release:
March 7, 2002

Contact:
David Willett, 202-675-6698


                Senators Reach Agreement on Fuel Economy
         Sierra Club Applauds Bipartisan Approach to Saving Oil

Washington, DC:  In a victory for energy security and the environment, a
bipartisan group of Senators led by John Kerry (D-MA) and John McCain
(R-AZ) have agreed on a plan to take the biggest single step to saving oil
and curbing global warming by making our cars and light trucks go farther
on a gallon of gasoline.  The Sierra Club applauded the group of Senators,
led by Kerry and McCain, including Olympia Snowe (R-ME), Susan Collins
(R-ME), Ernest Hollings (D-SC), Lincoln Chafee (R-RI), and Gordon Smith
(R-OR) for this effort.

"The Sierra Club applauds this effort to ensure that the Senate energy bill
saves oil, saves consumers money at the pump, and cuts pollution," said
Carl Pope, Executive Director of the Sierra Club.  "With bipartisan
support, and the need to improve energy security, there is no responsible
reason for Senators to oppose this bill."

The bipartisan agreement is a reasonable measure to raise Corporate Average
Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards to an average of 36 miles per gallon by 2015.
This step will ease our dependence on oil, saving as much as 1 million
barrels per day by 2016 -- as much as we currently import from Iraq and
Kuwait combined.   This provision closes the light truck loophole and
contains important safety measures.

America's cars and light trucks now consume 8 million barrels of oil every
day.  The average fuel economy of new vehicles sold has hit its lowest
point since 1980. With only 3 percent of the world's proven oil reserves,
we can not drill our way to oil independence.  With this important
agreement on improving fuel economy today, these Senators are leading the
way to reducing oil dependence.  In addition, cars and light trucks emit 20
percent of our carbon dioxide, the chief heat trapping gas responsible for
global warming.   By saving oil, this is a responsible step to reduce U.S.
greenhouse gas emissions.

"As with any compromise proposal, this is not one hundred percent of what
we were seeking," continued Pope, "but it represents a real and serious
step forward."

Technology exists to provide Americans with safe, efficient vehicles that
curb global warming pollution. More efficient engines, continuously
variable transmissions, and better aerodynamics could dramatically increase
the fuel economy of our cars. While CAFE standards doubled fuel economy for
cars from 1975-1989, the highway fatality rate dropped by half. American
technology must lead the way to cars that get even more miles to the gallon

"It is heartening to have this agreement," said Pope.  "Rather than
drilling in the pristine Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, we hope the
Senate will vote to make this reasonable step to reduce our dependence on
oil.

           ###



Erin Jordahl
Director, Iowa Chapter Sierra Club
3839 Merle Hay Road, Suite 280
Des Moines, IA 50310
515-277-8868
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