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CO2 and your car


CO2 and your car

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Many of us would have seen the August 2006 release of An Inconvenient Truth by ex-US vice-president, Al Gore. What's alarming is that we are now continuing to see phenomenal weather extremes including intense storms, droughts and floods.

Vehicle emissions account for about 8 per cent of the total carbon dioxides released into the atmosphere, which contribute to global warming and extreme weather conditions. When you are considering buying a car, a quick CO2 check may help to ease your conscience and help you feel a little more comfortable with your choice.

Surprisingly, Australia was the slowest to take action in joining the Kyoto agreement. It's fair to say that most Australian's really want to help change the symptoms of global warming and for many of us we are willing to drop one or two things or adopt something new in our efforts to combat severe CO2 emissions.

While we are not going to revert to the old horse and carriage, we do want to know how bad some cars are compared to others.

Green House Gases in Australia account for 28 tonnes per head. This is one of the highest per capita in the world. The world target is two tonnes of Green House Gases per head.

While no amount of CO2 emissions is good, the less CO2 emissions emitted the better.

By buying a vehicle with less CO2 emissions you will not only be helping the environment, but you’ll be helping to create demand for cars that are safer on the environment.

We're heading in the right direction

Australia is working hard now to reduce its carbon emissions. In 2005 a new industry target was established to reduce the average CO2 emissions for all new light vehicles to 222g CO2/km by 2010. This covers a broad range of vehicles including cars, SUVs and light trucks as well as all fuel types including petrol, diesel, LPG and so on.

Plus, all new vehicles sold in Australia are now required to report emissions in terms of grams of CO2/km.

If you look at the chart below you'll notice we're doing well. In 2002 the National Average Carbon Emissions sat at 256g CO2/km. In 2007 we managed to drop to 226.1 g CO2/km.

Reference: www.fcai.com.au

National Average Carbon Emissions (NACE) for all new light vehicles sold in Australia in 2007 was 226.1 g CO2/km. Australia is aiming to achieve a target of an average 222 g CO2/km by 2010.

While in total, passenger vehicles account for less than 8 per cent of Australia's total carbon emissions, the automotive industry has come together to help lower CO2s by introducing a new and broader target to reduce CO2 emissions of new vehicles by 2010. This has included changes in engine technology, growth in alternative fuel types and changes in vehicle design. As a result, over the past five years we have reduced our CO2 emissions by 10 per cent.

National Average Carbon Emission by year 
 Year  Grams CO2/km
 2002  252(est)
 2004  246.5
 2005  244.7
 2006  230.3
 2007  226.1

 

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