One day after the EPA shocked the nation with the rejection of a clean car waiver Global Exchange and concerned California citizens took their voices to the front steps of the EPA regional office in downtown San Francisco. There were hoots and hollers coming from outside and inside the building, as most EPA employees (also CA residents) gave thumbs up and cheers from the windows. It was obvious that the decision to dent the clean car waiver was a one man rogue decision, as a favor to big auto and big Bush

This past week the automakers were suing to stop the Pavely Law from going into effect in CA. 16 other states were prepared to adopt the standards of 30% tailpipe emission reductions by 2016 along with CA. The auto makers fought tooth and nail to stop this clean air law from passing, but the courts ruled on the side of clean air, clean cars and healthy communities, and dismissed the automakers outrageous lawsuit.

So why were we outside the EPA? The EPA needed to grant a waiver for CA and 16 other States to implement these tailpipe emissions, and for the first time ever the EPA DENIED the waiver. The EPA was the last hurdle to cleaner air and laying the ground work towards taking real step to curbing climate change, but the EPA played politics instead. The entire EPA scientific panel recommended the waiver be approved (check out GX pic in the article!), yet the Bush lapdog that in Stephen Johnson of the EPA put politics before progress.