A24-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, March 30,2002
(Continued from Page AIO)
price of pickups by thousands of
dollars even as it would drastical
ly cut their weight and power.
The new result would be trucks
too expensive for many farmers
and other working people, but
without the power to carry a
heavy load or make their way
across an early spring pasture in
hubcap-deep mud.
It’s not that the government
has anything against pickup
trucks in particular. The damage
would be done in the name of
fuel efficiency and the environ
ment. And the weapon of choice
would be the notoriously ineffi
cient corporate average fuel effi
ciency (CAFE) regulations. These
are a set of federal regulations
adopted in 1975 in response to
the Arab oil embargo that require
manufacturers to meet average
gas mileage requirements for spe
cific classes of vehicles.
As a quick measurement of the
effectiveness of CAFE regula
tions in achieving their original
intent of reducing America’s de
pendence on imported oil, con
sider that we were importing 35
percent of our oil before them,
and 50 percent today.
Nonetheless, the Senate is con
110 or 150 Gallon
Rear
RMBIIO2IT
K
Features
• 110 or 125 gallon tank with
jet agitation, molded sight gauge,
and 8" fillwell.
• Rear mount features 12 gauge formed steel
skid frame.
• Rear mount will fit category "1" & "2"
• Hypro 8 roller cast iron or "Silver Cast" PTO pump
with Multi-Speed Quick Coupler.
• 21', 28' and 30' Truss-T boom features vertical and horizontal
boom breakaway with 20" nozzle spacing.
sidering a bill that would man
date an unrealistically steep in
crease in the CAFE gas mileage
requirements for light trucks.
Specifically, the mileage excep
tion for vehicles in the “light
truck” category (including all
pickups) would be eliminated.
That would mean raising the
light truck average from 20.7
miles per gallon (mpg) to 35 mpg,
rolling them in with normal pas
senger cars that today are only
expected to meet a 27 mpg aver
age.
The only way vehicle manufac
turers could comply would be to
strip down the weight and power
of light trucks while boosting the
sticker price. Farmers would be
left with no option but to buy po
litically correct toys that kind of
look like pickups used to.
Those toys might be OK for
weekend pickup drivers, but they
are no substitute for the powerful
pickups that are the main work
horse for most farmers. No won
der so many farm organizations
have come out strongly against
this increase in CAFE regula
tions, but the danger of these reg
ulations goes well beyond their
potential economic damage to
U.S. farmers.
Well intentional as CAFE reg-
ount
Sold Through Servicing Dealers By:
HAMILTON EQUIPMENT, INC.
567 South Reading Road
Ephrata, PA 17522
1-717-733-7951
website; www.haminc.com
illations might have been, they
have created a generation of un
safe lightweight passenger cars.
People in these lighter vehicles
are tragically more vulnerable in
traffic accidents.
A Harvard Center for Risk
Analysis study found that traffic
deaths are increased by 1,300 to
2,600 a year as the result of vehi
cles downsized to comply with
CAFE. In 1999, USA Today
found that traffic accidents since
the CAFE mandated downsizing
had killed 46,000 people who
would have survived had they
been in heavier vehicles.
There is no environmental rea
son for extending CAFE’S dismal
record with passenger cars into
light trucks. The higher mileage
CAFE mandated for cars only
encouraged people to drive more,
spewing more exhaust into the
environment. And the higher
prices for these cars caused peo
ple to keep them longer,
resulting in more older
cars with higher emission
levels.
We can’t undo the dam
age CAFE regulations
have already done. Maybe
someday we can get rid of
them altogether. But for
now, I’m sure I speak for
all American farmers and
ranchers when I urge our
U.S. senators to leave our
pickup trucks alone.
Lynn Cornwell
Third Generation
Glasgow, Mont. Rancher
and Past President Of the
National Cattleman’s
Beef Association
University Of Maryland
To Forego Field Days
COLLEGE PARK, Md.
Faced with changing clientele
and priorities, as well as shrink
ing state budgets, the University
of Maryland College of Agricul
ture and Natural Resources
(AGNR) will forego all major
field day activities in 2002.
Cancelled field days include
the annual August field day at
the Wye Research and Education
Center (WREC), the Farm and
Family Field Day at the lower
Eastern Shore facility (LESREC),
etc.
The college will convene a task
force of faculty, staff, and others
to examine the role of field day
activities. Their goal: to make
WT
HgL
TOOLS, NOT TOYS.
Available at these servicing dealers
Reamstown
EAGLE
RENTAL CENTER
Rt. 272, Reamstown Traffic
Light
717-336-3945
Abbottstown Hummels Wharf
MESSICK’S HUMMEL’S TEXACO
74*1 Lincoln Hwy. Rte 30E Rt. 11 4 15
Abbottstown, PA 17301 570-743-7459
717-259-6617 888-285-0225
Allentown
LEHIGH AG EQ. INC.
6570 Ruppsvlll* Rd
610-398-2553
1-800-779-3616
Carlisle
TRI-BORO
CONSTRUCTION
SUPPLIES
1490 RITNER HWY
1-800-248-6590
Dallastown
TRI-BORO
CONSTRUCTION
SUPPLIES
435 Locu«t St
717-246-3095
1-800-632-9018
East Earl
GOODS LAWN &
GARDEN CENTER
Routs 23
717-445-4490
MESSICK’S
It 7 Marta Driva
(Rhaama exit of Rt. 263)
717-367-1319,800-222-3373
Ephrata
WES STAUFFER
ENGINES & EQUIPMENT
23 Pleasant Vallsy Rd.
717-738-42150
Gap
GAP
POWER EQUIPMENT
Corner of Rt. 30 & Rt. 897
Gap: 717-442-8970
DISTRIBUTED BY NORTHEAST STIHL
recommendations that allow the
college to best achieve the out
reach education component of its
mission within the fiscal con
straints it faces.
Friends and clients of the col
lege can share their ideas and
suggestions by calling (301)
405-2072 or emailing
rbl l@umail.umd.edu.
AGNR will continue to offer
highly focused open houses, twi
light tours, and other issue- or
audience-specific educational
programs and activities at its re
search and education centers and
local Maryland Cooperative Ex
tension offices.
j<o/ s l99Si
Vac/Sbredder
$ 179-
BOMBERGER’S LAWN
& GARDEN
Lititz: 717-626-3301
Lebanon: 717-272-4155
Oxford
DEER CREEK
EQUIPMENT, INC.
6600 Limestone Rd
610-932-8858
Palmyra
HERR’S REPAIR
SHOP
RD 2, Box 11SA
717-838-1549
Palmyra
WEAVER’S LAWN &
GARDEN
740 W. Main St.
717-838-5999
Peach Bottom
A.K. SAW SHOP
214 Poach Bottom Road
Pequea
DREXEL AUTO SUPPLY
333 Stolnman Farm Road
717-284-2916
Quarryvllle
GAP POWER
RENTALS» PLUS
Rt 222
717-786-2221
is powerful, lightweight saw is
sat for homeowners - features
the Quick Cham Adjuster
Ronks
A & B SALES
& SERVICE
370 Newport Road
2 Mile* South of Rt 23
Along 772 Thru Monterey
iffen
MARTIN’S
EQUIPMENT CO.
Rt 50111/2 Miles South of
Schaefferatown, PA
717-949-6817
Shlppensburq
CEDAR GROVE FARM
STORE
1120 Ritner Hwy.
717-532-7571
Hagerstown. MD
EBY’S LAWN &
GARDEN
16400 Fairvlsw Road
301-733-4158
Cockeysvllle MD
SUBURBAN SALES
10757 York Rd.
410-785-2277
Whlteford MD
DEER CREEK
EQUIPMENT, INC.
720 Whaslsr School Rd.
301-879-5090
STIHL
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