Inhofe sends letter to McCarthy on Volkswagen investigation

U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-OK), who serves as the chair of the Environment and Public Works Committee, recently wrote to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Gina McCarthy regarding her agency’s investigation into the diesel emissions violations of Volkswagen.

“I understand that EPA has requested Volkswagen produce light duty electric vehicles (EV) as part of the settlement,” said the letter. “While EPA has favored EVs in the past and inevitably will continue to do so, EVs are not the only answer to mitigating the Volkswagen emissions issue. If the purpose of the settlement is to remediate the excess nitrogen oxide and other pollutants emitted by compromised Volkswagen light duty vehicles, requiring light duty EV production will have little overall impact.”

Inhofe’s letter was sent as the EPA deadline provided to Volkswagen for submission of the company’s plans to solve its emssions problems approached. Inhofe specifically mentioned the EPA’s status in terms of considering electric vehicles and natural gas vehicles.

“In regards to the Volkswagen case, however, natural gas vehicles should not be dismissed offhand," the letter stated. "Instead of picking a specific technology winner, EPA would gain more value from including natural gas vehicles — including heavy duty trucks — in the agreement to complement the EV path this administration continues to favor. This could significantly improve air quality in a less expensive, manageable way than choosing to only support the advancement of electric light duty vehicles.”