The Clean Air Award is presented to individuals, organizations, communities and businesses that have made a significant contribution to cleaner air. Honda is the only automaker ever to be honored with a Clean Air Award and it has achieved this recognition in three of the last four years. This year, Honda earned the award for voluntarily achieving 1/10 of Ultra Low Emission Vehicle (ULEV) performance for hydrocarbons, nitrogen oxide and carbon monoxide with the natural gas-powered Civic GX. Plans now call for the 2000 Civic GX certified to the all-new "Super" ULEV certification standards.
In Southern California, the GX is used by a large number of city, county and local government agencies, including the California Air Resources Board, University of California, the Los Angeles International Airport and the Air Quality Management District. The Civic GX is also used throughout Los Angeles for parking enforcement.
The dedicated natural gas Civic GX boasts a 25 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions compared to an equivalent gasoline vehicle. With its sealed fuel system, evaporative and refueling emissions are nearly eliminated. Hydrocarbon emissions are reduced by 98.5 percent compared to current vehicles.
"The City of Los Angeles commends Honda for its 1999 Clean Air Award," says Lillian Kawasaki, general manager of the City's Environmental Affairs Department. "The City's deployment of Civic GXs and other clean air vehicles has eliminated tons of emissions, resulting in improved air quality for our people."