All new vehicles sold after January 1, 2009 in California must include a label on their cars and trucks showing the vehicles’s greenhouse gas emissions.  MSNBC.com reports that this law will give consumers the opportunity to choose a cleaner burning car or truck.   ”This label will arm consumers with the information they need to choose a vehicle that saves gas, reduces greenhouse gas emissions, and helps fight smog all at once,” says California Air Resources Board chairman, Mary Nichols.  “Consumer choice is an especially powerful tool in our fight against climate change” says Nichols.  These labels will provide two scores on a scale of 1-10; a Smog Score and a Global Warming Score.  The average new car will score a 5 on each scale.  The higher the score the better, meaning the less of an impact that the car has on the environment and less greenhouse gas emissions. 

According to the Union of Concerned Scientists, they estimate that the Toyota Corolla will score about a 7 and that a Dodge Caravan will score about a 3.  The Honda Civic Hybrid will score about a 9, the scientists figure.

According to the Air Resources Board, there are about 2 million new vehicles purchased in California yearly.  There are about 25 million cars on the roads that travel 900 million miles daily.  That produces about 2288 tons of smog emissions and 350,000 tons of greenhouse gas emissions.  If every person was aware and used the green house gas emissions labels that will soon be on the new vehicles as a point of reference, this may be one way to reduce these gas emissions and help the environment.  Only buy vehicles with scores of 5 or better.