American Iron and Steel Institute issued the following announcement on Aug. 2.
Thomas J. Gibson, president and CEO of the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI), today issued the following statement in response to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) new joint proposal for light duty vehicles for model years 2021-2026:
“Steel offers the best solution for the environment, the best performance and most cost-effective solution for automakers, and the best value for consumers,” said Thomas J. Gibson, president and CEO of the American Iron and Steel Institute. “Steel is a key part of lightweight body and chassis components for automakers who work to build safe vehicles and lower greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Not only is steel one hundred percent recyclable but, compared to various alternative materials, steelmaking results in four to ten times lower GHG emissions.”
“We strongly believe that a well-crafted CAFE/GHG program can result in fuel efficient, safe vehicles, and protect our environment without burdening consumers with prohibitively high- priced vehicles or harming employment in the U.S. manufacturing sector. We appreciate NHTSA and EPA’s consideration of all these factors in the development of this proposal. As this regulatory program is finalized, we will continue to partner with our customers in the auto sector to provide innovative and cost-effective solutions to their lightweighting efforts,” Gibson concluded.
AISI has previously expressed concern that the midterm evaluation process was short-circuited by the previous administration, in an attempt to push through a final determination for the auto standards before all of the public comments were thoroughly considered.
Gibson also cited a recent peer-reviewed study, conducted by the Steel Recycling Institute, Life Cycle Greenhouse Gas Study of Automotive Lightweighting, which demonstrates that unintended consequences of lightweighting with alternative materials (such as aluminum) can result in greater GHG emissions over the life cycle of a vehicle.
Original source can be found here.
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