A big thanks to Mayor Euille for supporting cleaner cars!

Thanks to Mayor Euille’s support, the U.S. Conference of Mayors officially supports EPA cleaner gasoline and vehicles standards that will reduce pollution and improve healthy air for residents of Alexandria and Americans across the nation.

Today, the American Lung Association applauds Alexandria Mayor William Euille’s efforts to reduce harmful air pollution by cosponsoring a successful resolution to support Cleaner Gasoline and Vehicles Standards – also known as Tier 3 – at the U.S. Conference of Mayors Annual Meeting in Las Vegas. The Tier 3 standards, proposed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in March, are expected to have significant health benefits and could prevent up to 2,500 early deaths each year due to lower ozone and particulate pollution by the year 2030.

The resolution to support cleaner gasoline and vehicles passed yesterday and is now considered the official policy of the U.S. Conference of Mayors.  The Conference of Mayors becomes the latest in a broad range of stakeholders, including automakers, emissions control manufacturers, public health groups, labor organizations and environmental groups, that have expressed support for cleaner gasoline and vehicles.

“We applaud Mayor Euille’s leadership in advocating for these lifesaving standards,” said Dennis Alexander, regional executive director for the American Lung Association in Virginia. “Cleaner gasoline and vehicles would mean fewer asthma attacks, emergency room visits and premature deaths, particularly for those most vulnerable to air pollution, like the 2,000 children in Alexandria who suffer from asthma.”

The U.S. Conference of Mayors is the official non-partisan organization of cities with populations of 30,000 or more.  Mayors contribute to the development of national policy by serving on one or more of the conference's standing committees, which recommend policy positions every year at the Annual Meeting they believe should be adopted by the organization.  The policy positions that are adopted are then distributed to the President and Congress.

Conference of Mayors Environment Committee Vice-Chair Mayor Michael Bissonnette of Chicopee, MA and Environment Committee Member Carolyn Goodman of Las Vegas introduced the resolution to support the Cleaner Gasoline and Vehicles Standards because they know that passenger vehicles are major sources of ozone and particle pollution that pose serious threats to public health. They were joined by mayors across the country who voted to adopt the resolution on Monday.

Pollution from vehicle pollution can trigger asthma attacks, worsen lung and heart health and even lead to early death. Children, the elderly and those with chronic lung and heart health are most vulnerable to traffic-related pollution. Emerging research shows that those of who live, work and go to school near major roadways are at even greater risk to the impacts of traffic pollution.

If implemented, the new standards will:

• Ensure that all new vehicles emit lower emissions than current vehicles do, and reduce allowable levels of sulfur in gasoline which in turn will lower the pollution from all vehicles (new and old) that run on the cleaner fuel.  Using lower sulfur gasoline in cars currently on the road will reduce as much pollution as taking 33 million cars off the road.
• Continue to reduce nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide and volatile organic compounds, all of which are harmful pollutants themselves and important precursors of ozone pollution and particle pollution.

 What’s more, the health benefits of the standards are able be achieved for a minimal cost. It is estimated that cleaner gasoline will cost about 1 cent per gallon, according to the EPA and a recent report by the Lung Association.