Global Warming and Suvs

Bad Air Days

Throughout the past decade, consumers have been increasingly drawn to Sport Utility Vehicles when contemplating the purchase of a new car. Although these light- trucks may offer increased cabin size for families, they pose especially dangerous threats to the consumer as well as the environment. Global warming according to The American Heritage Dictionary is "an increase in the average temperature of the earth's atmosphere." As global warming is becoming more of a pressing threat than an abstract idea, environmentalists turn their attention toward SUVs, as they are the highest emitters of carbon dioxide among vehicles (the gas responsible for the warming process). As the SUV industry has become more closely critiqued, the demand for producers to manufacture a fuel efficient SUV is critical for the well being of our earth as well as its citizens.

One significant cause of Global warming is the burning of fossil fuels which releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. The carbon pollution blankets the earth, trapping in heat and consequently causing the earths temperature to rise. According to statistics provided by the Sierra Club, the "earth's temperature is only five to nine degrees warmer today than it was 10,000 years ago during the last ice age" (Overview 1) As this increase in temperature may seem minor, its minute change can bring about

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detrimental effects. Global warming, if not attended to, could cause biodiversity loss, sea level rise, the spread of disease, increases in extreme weather events, as well as a variety of other potential problems (Overview 1). Global warming is not a process that can be 100 percent eliminated but can certainly be delayed, especially if SUV producers can provide a solid way for SUVs not to emit such an abundance of harmful gases.

Why is it that consumers are drawn to vehicles that produce so many detrimental effects, have an average of 13 miles per gallon, and take a load out of their pockets? Perhaps, they haven't been educated on the effect that their single sports utility vehicle is having on the environment. The U.S. Federal Highway Administration calculated that "the average vehicle emits more than 600 pounds of pollution each year" ("Advanced Technology" Pages n.p). In contrast, a recent study performed by the Sierra Club, results showed "an SUV emits 43 percent more global warming pollution and 47 percent more air pollution than the average car" (Driving up the Heat 2).With these high amounts of pollution being leaked into the air, its only a matter of time before the earth starts to see and experience dramatic changes. Automobile manufacturers have to do something to stop this increase before it's too late.

Since 1975, the Corporate Average Fuel Economy has instituted standards in an attempt to conserve oil. When the CAFЙ standards were first introduced however they were not directed toward the issue of global warming but to decrease foreign oil dependency. Automakers today are required to produce cars with a minimum of 27.5 mile per gallon