DOCSLIB.ORG

Relaxing CAFE: Foreign Direct Investment, NAFTA, and Domestic Product Standards∗

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Relaxing CAFE: Foreign Direct Investment, NAFTA, and Domestic Product Standards∗ Relaxing CAFE: Foreign Direct Investment, NAFTA, and Domestic Product Standards∗ Phillip McCalmany Alan Spearotz University of Melbourne University of California - Santa Cruz June 2014 Abstract This paper studies the effects of domestic product standards on the offshoring behavior of au- tomotive firms. In particular, we examine an important non-tariff barrier to trade within US fuel economy policy - the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) \Two-Fleet Rule". By leveraging the removal of the two-fleet rule upon implementation of NAFTA, and exploiting a policy disconti- nuity based on vehicle characteristics, we present evidence that the costs of offshoring were reduced to a larger degree for varieties that were subject to US fuel economy rules. Specifically, we estimate that prices fell between 5-10% for varieties subject to the CAFE Two-Fleet rule relative to varieties that were exempt from the rule. These effects are persistent, not present for manufacturers that did not offshore prior to NAFTA, and are robust to variety-specific trends. These effects also reconcile the post-NAFTA differences in implied compliance costs between cars and trucks for our treatment manufacturer (Chrysler). Overall, the results highlight the potential costs of regional enforcement of product standards, which may act as a barrier to natural patterns of efficient specialization. Key Words: Intra-industry trade, offshoring, trade liberalization, corporate average fuel economy, product standards, national treatment JEL Classifications: F12, F14, F23 ∗We thank John Reis, and two referees, for extremely helpful comments. This paper has benefited from presentations at the All-UC Conference on Energy and Environmental Economics, UC Santa Cruz, Berkeley ARE, the Midwest In- ternational Economics conference, and the Canadian Economics Association annual conference, along with a discussion by Deborah Swenson, and comments by Jesse Cuhna, Carlos Dobkin, and Jonathan Robinson. Outstanding research assistance from Sean Tanoos is gratefully acknowledged. The authors thank Rick Schmitgen and Lisa Williamson for data assistance. Support from the UC Center for Energy and Environmental Economics and the UCSC Committee on Research is gratefully acknowledged. [email protected] [email protected], Tel.: +1 831 459 1530, Fax: +1 831 459 5077 1 Introduction The last few decades have seen a dramatic (and often contentious) push to include a variety of non- trade policy objectives under the umbrella of the World Trade Organization (WTO). These policies, which may include intellectual property, environmental, and labor standards, in some cases are already permissible so long as they are imposed on a non-discriminatory basis across exporters, and that domes- tic producers are subject to the same standard. What are the effects of imposing domestic standards across multiple geographical sources of supply? Indeed, this is a complex question to answer given that while most WTO disputes in this area have involved extraction of resources (US-Shrimp) or more direct issues of human health (EU-Asbestos), these exemptions from standard trade practice could in theory apply to a wide variety of manufactured goods.1 As trade in manufactured goods is disproportionately controlled by large multinationals, it is important to understand how these types of policies may induce a sorting of production across locations within the firm. While studying these policies is complicated by the fact that they are varied in form and application, a fairly common policy is one that governs the average characteristic of a product or production process within a pre-specified group or geographic region. For example, the Clean Air Act allows for \emissions averaging" across emissions points to maintain compliance.2 Similarly, within the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) program, vehicle efficiency by manufacturer is averaged, in some cases by fleets that are defined by location. Many international environmental policies governing automobiles are also based on the average efficiency of fleets.3 Outside of the automobile sector, many policies that aim to reduce carbon emissions require average compliance within a pre-specified region (eg EU, California). Within the US, recent proposals by the Obama Administration have included average CO2 emissions standards that must be met within each state, but with no averaging across states. Generally, what are the effects of product or production standards that are segmented by location? While requiring each location meet a standard individually may reflect the desire for a \fair" policy, do segmented policy regions create a misallocation of production that limits the gains from comparative advantage? 1For a comprehensive discussion of Article XX, see the WTO Committee on Trade and Environment, secretariat article 203, at http://docsonline.wto.org/imrd/directdoc.asp?DDFDocuments/t/wt/cte/w203.doc. 2See http://www.epa.gov/air/caa/flexibility.html, which states \To provide even greater flexibility, many EPA rules allow a company to comply with performance standards through averaging emissions among the vehicles it manufacturers, or by averaging emissions among multiple emission points." 3See An et al. (2011) for a discussion of Fuel Efficiency Rules by location. Along with the US, a number of other countries (Japan, Canada, Australia, China, and South Korea) regulate fuel economy standards using a \numeric standard averaged over fleets or based on vehicle weight-bins or sub-classes". 1 To study the effects of these types of policies, we examine the CAFE program. Focusing specifically on light-duty trucks (which account for 50% of the US automative market), we evaluate the regulatory costs of a regional compliance scheme by leveraging the integration of production regions due to NAFTA, and a regulatory discontinuity that defines program jurisdiction. Estimating hedonic pricing regressions using a detailed database of light-duty truck sales and production, our results indicate that at the same aggregate standard, enforcement of the standard by region increased prices between 5-10%. Instituted in the 1970s in response to the mideast oil crisis, the CAFE program stipulates that “fleets” of vehicles sold in the US must meet a sales-weighted average fuel economy in each year. Generally, fleets for any manufacturer are broken up by car and light-duty truck, and then by location within each class. Despite an intense focus on the broad aspects of the CAFE program, very little is known about the location dimension of the program: the CAFE \Two-Fleet Rule". Specifically, the rule required that US/Canadian and \Import" fleets of cars and trucks meet CAFE standards separately, where the US/Canadian Fleet is defined as using more than 75% US/Canadian value-added. Upon implementation of NAFTA (1994), US/Canadian and Mexican car and truck fleets were harmonized for purposes of regulatory calculations. The policy was discontinued globally for trucks shortly thereafter, though the two-fleet rule remained for cars.4 To identify the effects of this regulatory change, we exploit the constraints imposed by the two-fleet rule prior to NAFTA, and the two loopholes by which firms could avoid CAFE fines within the light- truck segment. Pre-NAFTA, the two-fleet rule raised a number of issues in terms of offshoring trucks to Mexico, where firms had to meet two fuel economy averages - one for locations outside North America, and one for the US/Canadian market. This was a particularly important constraint for trucks since there are essentially two different types of trucks, compact and full size, the former being more efficient than the CAFE average, and the latter being less efficient. As a consequence, in order for production offshored to Mexico to exactly meet the CAFE average requires offshoring two types of truck, thereby replicating the U.S./Canadian structure of production. Indeed, this is critical for domestic firms as they operated almost exactly at the CAFE average in every year. However, two loopholes exist to get around the two-fleet constraint. First, firms could simply offshore production to Mexico that is CAFE exempt. 4For all other trucks produced globally, the policy was eliminated in 1996. As stated by NHTSA, \Beginning in 1980, light trucks were administratively subjected to a similar two-fleet rule. However, given changes in market conditions (the \captive import" sector of the fleet had become insignificant), NHTSA eliminated the two-fleet rule for light trucks beginning with MY 1996." See http://www.nhtsa.gov/cars/rules/cafe/overview.htm. 2 Ironically, light-duty trucks are exempt from fuel efficiency rules if they are sufficiently inefficient (large) - above 8,500 lbs gross vehicle weight (GVW). Producing the largest trucks in Mexico would also allow firms to exploit economies of scale in producing one type of large truck while also using as much local content as is optimal. However, if producing smaller trucks in Mexico is optimal from a perspective of specialization, then satisfying the regulatory requirement goes against the gains from specialization and raises costs. The alternative loophole within the two-fleet rule is to offshore final assembly of vehicles to Mexico, but to utilize sufficient US/Canadian inputs (eg. parts) to classify the final assembly in Mexico as US/Canadian production. Hence, there is a general disincentive to use inputs from Mexico for varieties subject to CAFE standards. Furthermore, more specific to offshoring, while firms could send inputs from the US to Mexico to achieve something closer to optimal specialization, this too would be a costly strategy in that transportation costs would be incurred for the inputs. Overall, manufacturers could avoid the two-fleet rule by offshoring exempt varieties and/or engaging in costly input trade. Crucially, when two-fleet was removed, it relaxed a constraint on non-exempt varieties since costly input trade was no longer necessary to exploit comparative advantage. However, for varieties that were exempt to begin with, removing the policy had no direct effect. This distinction and its differential implications for the cost of exempt/non-exempt trucks is the basis for our empirical approach.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • North America Sales History and Forecast
    North America sales history and forecast 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 U.S. car 131,559 153,658 162,703 172,505 166,848 170,794 172,594 195,026 211,172 Canada car 7,701 8,922 9,182 9,900 10,903 10,895 10,872 13,956 13,423 Mexico car 1,944 2,442 3,995 5,219 4,573 4,990 6,468 7,680 8,189 North America car 141,204 165,022 175,880 187,624 182,324 186,679 189,934 216,662 232,784 U.S. truck – 1,312 26,720 40,622 34,021 37,789 68,611 66,613 67,151 Canada. truck – 89 1,840 2,802 3,072 2,857 5,102 5,142 4,909 Mexico truck 115 233 213 897 982 989 928 890 983 North America truck 115 1,634 28,773 44,321 38,075 41,635 74,641 72,645 73,043 BMW 141,319 166,656 204,653 231,945 220,399 228,314 264,575 289,307 305,827 U.S. car 739,217 – – – – – – – – Canada car 86,148 – – – – – – – – Mexico car 47,176 – – – – – – – – North America car 872,541 – – – – – – – – U.S. truck 1,770,794 – – – – – – – – Canada truck 183,048 – – – – – – – – Mexico truck 45,123 – – – – – – – – North America truck 1,998,965 – – – – – – – – CHRYSLER CORP. 2,871,506 – – – – – – – – U.S. car – 889,506 894,219 863,043 739,430 744,526 751,850 775,084 796,545 Canada car – 92,064 89,163 76,691 83,291 80,243 79,625 84,883 88,430 Mexico car 52,058 65,957 86,948 78,504 86,942 87,746 91,957 97,751 North America car – 1,033,628 1,049,339 1,026,682 901,225 911,711 919,221 951,924 982,726 U.S.
    [Show full text]
  • Increased Automobile Fuel Efficiency and Synthetic Fuels: Alternatives for Reducing Oil Imports
    Increased Automobile Fuel Efficiency and Synthetic Fuels: Alternatives for Reducing Oil Imports September 1982 NTIS order #PB83-126094 Library of Congress Catalog Card Number 82-600603 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402 Foreword This report presents the findings of an assessment requested by the Senate Com- mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. The study assesses and compares increased automobile fuel efficiency and synthetic fuels production with respect to their potential to reduce conventional oil consumption, and their costs and impacts. Con- servation and fuel switching as a means of reducing stationary oil uses are also con- sidered, but in considerably less detail, in order to enable estimates of plausible future oil imports. We are grateful for the assistance of the project advisory panels and the many other people who provided advice, information, and reviews. It should be understood, how- ever, that OTA assumes full responsibility for this report, which does not necessarily represent the views of individual members of the advisory panels. Director Automobile Fuel Efficiency Advisory Panel Michael J. Rabins, Chairman Wayne State University Maudine R. Cooper* John B. Heywood National Urban League, Inc. Massachusetts Institute of Technology John Ferron John Holden National Automobile Dealers Association Ford Motor Co. Donald Friedman Maryann N. Keller Minicar, Inc. Paine, Webber, Mitchell, & Hutchins Herbert Fuhrman Paul Larsen National Institute for GMC Truck and Coach Division Automobile Service Excellence Robert D. Nell James M. Gill Consumers Union The Ethyl Corp. Kenneth Orski R. Eugene Goodson** German Marshall Fund of the United States Hoover Universal, Inc.
    [Show full text]
  • Effects of Recent Vehicle Design Changes on Safety Performance," Progress Reports for October 1977 Through 1979, Contract DOT-HS-7-Q1759
    TL DOT HS- 885-378 242 . R23 TOTS OF RECENT VEHICLE DESIGN CHANGES ON SAFETY PERFORMANCE Volume I D. iedmoocS B. Schmitz K. Friedman KINETIC RESEARCH department of TRANSPORTATION ( A Division of Minicars, Inc. ) 55 Depost Road GoSeta, California 93017 AUG 1 2 1980 " LIBRARY Contract No. DOT-HS- 7-01759 Contract Amount: $134,000 March 1879 FINAL REPORT This document is available to the U.S. public through the National Technical Information Service, Springfield, Virginia 22161 Prepared For U.S. DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Washington, D.C. 20580 NOTICE This document is disseminated under the sponsorship of the Department of Transportation in the interest of information exchange. The United States Government assumes no liability for the contents or use thereof. 7^ X<f* , ^23 Technical Report Documentation Page /.]_ 1. Report No. 2. Government AccMtien No. 3. R.opi.nt » Catalog No. DOT rHS -80 5 -3 7 8 4. Till* and iubtifl# 5. R «porr Oo*b March 1979 Effects of Recent Vehicle Design Changes 6. R *t forming Orgam zanon Coo* On Safety Performance Volume I 8. Performing Orgam senen Report No. 7. Author' l) DEPARTMENT OF D. Redmond, B. Schmitz, K. Friedman j KR-TR-032 ' TRAN.^PnnThrr/^KT 9. R*rformi ng Organization Noma and Aodf.»s 10. Wqrfa Unit No. (TRAI5) Kinetic Research AUG 1 2 1980 (A Division of Minicars, Inc.) 11. Contract or Grartf No. 55 Depot Road DOT -HS-7-01 759 j •• library 13- Report and Period Co*or®d Gnlota r a Q3ni7 .. i Interim Report U.
    [Show full text]
  • Digital 5 3 Ive N N Inside This Issue: a Retrospective: Road & Track ‘S Coverage of Opel 1968-1975
    ry sa th r digital 5 3 ive n n Inside this issue: A Retrospective: Road & Track ‘s Coverage of Opel 1968-1975 Volume DG, Issue 02 Digital Prototype #2, 2015 ? The “Missing Opel Book” Perhaps the best Opel books in terms of page count and value, are the "Portfolio" paperbacks that include original drive tests and other coverage drawn from numerous magazine articles published many years ago. Portions of those were re-printed in older Opel Club issues, but contrary to an impression that may have been given, they do not contain all there is to know! Recently a news article appeared about unpublished original auto magazine notes, photos, and other materials, which were being made available for public inspection at a university archive. This brought back memories in particular of Opel-related coverage from Road and Track magazine, with a focus on the peak US-export Opel era of 1968-1975. Unfortunately, inquiries to the archive revealed that no Opel-related materials apparently survived to make it through processing by staff for this special collection. This compounds an apparent slight by existing publishers, who compiled R&T articles for numerous other makes, but apparently did not find their Opel coverage worthy of a book edition! What we did get, was some brief internal correspondence concerning advertising rates in the early 1970's, combined with a analysis of overlaps of editorial coverage with ads (for several product manufacturers, including Opel). The actual documents were heavily restricted from use, per terms that are commonly applied to vintage materials by archives nowadays.
    [Show full text]
  • The Talepipe
    The Talepipe March 2019 Fallbrook Vintage Car Club The Fallbrook Vintage Car Club is a group of members that share a common interest in the preservation and appreciation of vintage vehicles. We are dedicated to serving others through charitable events and activities that reflect positively on the Fallbrook community. A Region of the Antique Automobile Club of America About This Month’s Cover See the story about Bob Nixon elsewhere in this issue... The AMC Gremlin (also American Motors Gremlin) is an American subcompact automobile introduced in 1970, manufactured and marketed in a single, two-door body style in America (1970- 1978) by American Motors Corporation (AMC) — as well as in Mexico (1974-1978) by AMC’s Vehículos Automotores Mexicanos (VAM) subsidiary. Featuring a shortened Hornet platform and bodywork with a pronounced, almost vertical tail, the Gremlin was classified as an economy car by 1970’s U.S. standards. It competed with the Chevrolet Vega and Ford Pinto, as well as imported cars that included the Volkswagen Beetle and Toyota Corolla. The small domestic automaker marketed the Gremlin as “the first American-built import”. The Gremlin reached a total production of 671,475 over a single generation — and was superseded by a (thoroughly) restyled variant, the AMC Spirit. Designed to look either “cute or controversial - depending on one’s viewpoint ... for many, it seemed perfect for the free-thinking early 1970’s.” American Motors executives apparently felt confident enough to not worry that the Gremlin name might have negative connotations. Time magazine noted two definitions for gremlin: “Defined by Webster’s as ‘a small gnome held to be responsible for malfunction of equipment.’ American Motors’ definition: ‘a pal to its friends and an ogre to its enemies.’” The car’s cartoon-inspired mascot was marketed for product differentiation and was intended to be memorable to consumers.
    [Show full text]
  • Vauxhall Astra H 2016 Workshop Manual
    Vauxhall Astra H 2016 Workshop Manual VAUXHALL ASTRA H WORKSHOP MANUAL PDF - Vauxhall Astra H 2016 Workshop Manual PDF file for free that includes illustrations, Get Vauxhall Astra H Workshop Manual PDF file for free from our online library Opel Astra Service Repair Manual - Manual Madness - Full Opel Astra Service Repair Manual available to download for free Opel (1) Peugeot (12) Polaris (6) Renault (1) Seadoo (6) Subaru (3) Suzuki (74) Toyota (16) Holden Astra workshop maintenance repair manual - models appeared inside January 2016, New gregory's repair workshop manual : holden astra ts The Download of the file opel 1.4 workshop manuals downloads Vauxhall Astra 05 Workshop Manual - Vauxhall Astra Workshop Manual Pdf Free eBook Download Vauxhall/Opel Astra And Zafira Diesel Service And Repair Manual. Astra Hatchback, Saloon & astra mk4 workshop manual - Astra Owners Club - astra mk4 workshop manual; Aug 2016 Posts 1,549 Mentioned in 0 Post(s) Quoted Free PDF: Vauxhall Astra H Workshop Manual - Vauxhall Astra H 2016 Workshop Manual Download Owners Manual. VAUXHALL ASTRA H 2016 WORKSHOP MANUAL. DOWNLOAD: VAUXHALL ASTRA H 2016 WORKSHOP MANUAL. Opel Astra - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia - The Opel Astra F debuted in September 1991. With the Kadett E's successor, Opel adopted the Astra nameplate, which was already used by Vauxhall for the Kadett D and E Download 2016 Vauxhall Astra Owners Manual - Auto - 2016 Vauxhall Astra Owners Manual Download For Free in PDF format from our database website Renault Clio Workshop Service Manual; 2016 Tacoma Vehicle Pocket Download VAUXHALL ASTRA DIESEL WORKSHOP MANUAL - - 2016 Vauxhall Astra Owners Manual, Filetype: PDF, VAUXHALL ASTRA H 2016 WORKSHOP MANUAL PDF Vauxhall Astra H 2016 Download Nissan td27 diesel workshop manual.pdf Vauxhall Astra H 2016 Workshop Manual - Vauxhall Astra H 2016 Workshop Manual VAUXHALL ASTRA WORKSHOP MANUAL PDF Read Online and Download PDF Ebook Vauxhall Astra H Workshop Manual.
    [Show full text]
  • Growing Japanese Presence in the US Auto Industry
    Report to CongressionalRequesters MU&l@88 FOREIGN INVE!3TMENT GrowingJapanese Presencein theU.S. Auto Industry National Security and International AfM.rs Ditiion B-230351 March 7,1988 The Honorable Marcy Kaptur The Honorable John Dingell The Honorable Edward Madigan House of Representatives This report responds to your request that we assesspotential employment and other effects of foreign investment in the U.S. auto sector. SevenJapanese-affiliated automakers and more than 100 Japanese-affiliated auto parts suppliers have begun operating or constructing facilities in the United States in recent years. These investments have raised concernsover the future of the U.S. auto manufacturing and parts suppliers industries. This report addressessome of those concerns. As arranged with your offices, unless you publicly announce its contents earlier, no further distribution of this report will be made until 14 days from its issue date. At that time, we will send copies to appropriate congressionalcommittees and other interested parties. Copies will be made available to others upon request. Frank C. Conahan Assistant Comptroller General Executive Summary In the 1980s Japaneseautomakers have invested more than $5 billion in U.S.-basedassembly facilities. Seven Japanese-affiliated auto manufac- turers and more than 100 Japaneseaffiliated auto parts suppliers are operating or constructing facilities in the United States. The growth of foreign direct investment has led to concerns over the future of the U.S. auto manufacturing and parts supplier industries. Critics suggest that it is causing job losses,reducing the market share for U.S. companies,and contributing to industry overcapacity. In view of these concerns, Representatives Marcy Kaptur, John Dingell, and Edward Madigan requested that .GAO address several issues, including l whether foreign investment in the U.S.
    [Show full text]
  • Vauxhall Astra H 2017 Workshop Manual.Pdf
    Vauxhall Astra H 2017 Workshop Manual If you are searched for the book Vauxhall astra h 2017 workshop manual in pdf form, in that case you come on to the loyal website. We furnish the utter edition of this ebook in PDF, doc, txt, DjVu, ePub forms. You can read online Vauxhall astra h 2017 workshop manual either downloading. Too, on our website you can read the guides and another art eBooks online, either downloading theirs. We will to draw on your note that our website not store the eBook itself, but we give reference to website whereat you can download either reading online. So if you have must to load pdf Vauxhall astra h 2017 workshop manual , then you've come to correct site. We have Vauxhall astra h 2017 workshop manual PDF, txt, doc, ePub, DjVu formats. We will be happy if you will be back us again and again. Holden astra workshop service repair manual Other Holden Astra Car Repair Manuals UK manual covering Holden Astra AH (Vauxhall the Astra because a captive import from late 2017 till Opel astra service repair manual - manual madness Full Opel Astra Service Repair Manual available to download for free Opel (1) Peugeot (12) Polaris (6) Renault (1) Seadoo (6) Subaru (3) Suzuki (74) Toyota (16) Vauxhall astra haynes workshop manual 2017 Vauxhall Astra Haynes Workshop Manual 2017 latch x5 2017, 2017 impala repair manual download Opel astra ( 2017) - netcarshow.com Opel Astra. The new edition Astra was launched in February 2017 with new economical engines, refined looks, improved technology and an expanded equipment range.
    [Show full text]
  • US Automotive Imports from Japan
    The U.S.-Japan Automotive Bilateral 1994 Trade Deficit May 1991 for The Automotive Parts Advisory Committee by The Office for the Study of Automotive Transportation The University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute Report Number: UMTRI 91-20 The overall objectives of the Office for the Study of Automotive Transportation (OSAT)are to provide information resources, industry analysis, communication forums, and academic research that meet the continually changing needs of the international automotive and automotive-related industries. The U.S.-Japan Automotive Bilateral 1994 Trade Deficit May 1991 by Sean P. McAlinden David J. Andrea Michael S. Flynn Brett C. Smith The Office for the Study of Automotive Transportation The Transportation Research Institute The University of Michigan Ann Arbor, Michigan OSAT wishes to express its appreciation to the Automotive Parts Advisory Committee, under whose auspices this study was conducted, for providing financial support for this effort. The analysis and interpretations expressed here are solely the authors', and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Automotive Parts Advisory Committee, its members, or employees. Tuhnicol Report Doculmtutim Pogr ' 1. R-rt No. 2. Gorrmnmt Accr~t~onNo. 3. Rrs~p~mt'mCrtolog No. UMTRI 91-20 4. Title avd Subtitle 5. Roport Dote The U.S.-Japan Automotive Bilateral May 1991 1994 Trade Deficit 6. Pnforninq O~gonirotionCadr , I. P~rlorringOrgonirat~on Repor! No. McAl inden, Sean P. ; Andrea, David J. ; Flynn, Michael S.; Smith, Brett C. 9. Pefloming Orvmiaotion None ndAddrr~s 10. WorC Un~tNo. (TRAIS) Office for the Study of Automotive Transportatioi U-M Transportation Research Institute 11.
    [Show full text]
  • Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Vehicle Fuel Efficiency Standards for Canada
    GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS AND VEHICLE FUEL EFFICIENCY STANDARDS FOR CANADA Pollution Probe February 2005 Written by Bob Oliver, P.Eng. POLLUTION PROBE is a non-profit charitable organization that works in partnership with all sectors of society to protect health by promoting clean air and clean water. Pollution Probe was established in 1969 following a gathering of 240 students and professors at the University of Toronto campus to discuss a series of disquieting pesticide-related stories that had appeared in the media. Early issues tackled by Pollution Probe included urging the Canadian government to ban DDT for almost all uses, and campaigning for the clean-up of the Don River in Toronto. We encouraged curbside recycling in 140 Ontario communities and supported the development of the Blue Box programme. Pollution Probe has published several books, including Profit from Pollution Prevention, The Green Consumer Guide (of which more than 225,000 copies were sold across Canada) and Additive Alert. Since the 1990s, Pollution Probe has focused its programmes on issues related to air pollution, water pollution, climate change and human health, including a major programme to remove human sources of mercury from the environment. Pollution Probe’s scope has also expanded to new concerns, including the unique risks that environmental contaminants pose to children, the health risks related to exposures within indoor environments, and the development of innovative tools for promoting responsible environmental behaviour. Since 1993, as part of our ongoing commitment to improving air quality, Pollution Probe has held an annual Clean Air Campaign during the month of June to raise awareness of the inter-relationships among vehicle emissions, smog, climate change and human respiratory problems.
    [Show full text]
  • Fuel Economy and Annual Travel for Passenger Cars and Light Trucks: National On-Road Survey
    US. Department of Transportation National Highway Traffic Safety Administration DOT HS 806 971 May 1986 NHTSA Technical Report Fuel Economy and Annual Travel for Passenger Cars and Light Trucks: National On-Road Survey This document is available to the public from the National Technical Information Service, Springfield, Virginia 22161. Technical Report Documentation Page 1. Report No. 2. Government Accession No, 3. Recipient's Catalog No, DOT HS 806 971 4. Title and Subtitle 5, Report Date Fuel Economy and Annual Travel for Passenger Cars and May 1986 Light Trucks: National On-Road Survey 6. Performing Organization Code WPP-1 0 8. Performing Orgoniiotion Report No. 7. Author's) Glenn G. Parsons 9. Performing Organization Nome and Address 10. Work Unit No. (TRAIS) Office of Standards Evaluation National Highway Traffic Safety Administration 11. Controct or Grant No. 400 Seventh Street, S.W. Washington, DC 20590 13. Type of Report and Period Covered 12. Sponsoring Agency Name and Address U.S. Department of Transportation NHTSA Technical Report National Highway Traffic Safety Administration 400 Seventh Street, S.W. 14. Sponsoring Agency Code Washington, DC 20590 IS. Supplementary Notes An agency staff review of existing Federal regulations performed'in compliance with Executive Order 12291 and the agency's regulatory review plan (Regulatory Reform - The Review Process, DOT HS-806-159, March 1982). 16. Abstroet One of the principal actions taken by the United States in response tcr~tfte~ worldwide energy crisis of the 1970's was to Federally mandate minimum fuel economy standards for new motor vehicles. These standards began with the 1978 Model Year and continue in force today.
    [Show full text]
  • The Automotive Industry, General Motors, and Genesee County The
    The Automotive Industry, General Motors, and Genesee County A Report Prepared For The Charles Stewart Mott Foundation Flint, Michigan The Office for the Study of The Industrial Technology Institute Automotive Transportation, Ann Arbor, Michigan The University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute Ann Arbor, Michigan The Automotive Industry, General Motors, and Genesee County December, 1987 A Report Prepared For The Charles Stewart Mott Foundation Flint, Michigan David E. Cole Michael S, Flynn Project Director Principle Investigator Director, Senior Researcher, Office for the Study Industrial Technology Institute of .4utomotive TI-ansportation Sean P. McAlinden David Andrea Researcher, Research Associate, Industrial Technology Institute Office for the Study of Autolnotive TI-ansportation The Automotive Industry, General Motors, and Genesee County Executive Summary The past two decades have seen major shifts in the patterns of domestic industrial production. Manufacturing has declined as a percentage of our GNP, and our needs for manufactured goods are increasingly met by offshore production. The midwest region of the United States relies heavily on manufacturing for its jobs and economic activity, and Genesee County, with its central city of Flint, ranks as one of the middle-sized metropolitan areas of the United States most dependent on the manufacturing sector for its local economy. The midwest manufacturing base is heavily concentrated in automotive production, and Genesee County's manufacturing base is almost exclusively automotive. The automotive activities of the Genesee economy are virtually all concentrated in and supportive of one company, General Motors, and GM activity in Genesee represents almost the entire span of automotive manufacturing activities that the corporation pursues throughout the United States.
    [Show full text]