MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) – A federal judge on Wednesday ruled that states can regulate greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles, rejecting automakers’ claims that the rules are pre-empted by federal law and that technology can’t be developed to meet them.

“There is no question that the GHG (greenhouse gas) regulations present great challenges to automakers,” Judge William Sessions III, sitting in the U.S. District Court in Burlington, wrote at the conclusion of a 240-page decision issued Wednesday.

He added, “History suggests that the ingenuity of the industry, once put in gear, responds admirably to most technological challenges. In light of the … history of compliance with previous technological challenges … the Court remains unconvinced automakers cannot meet the challenges of Vermont and California’s GHG regulations.”

During a 16-day trial that concluded in May, industry executives testified that the regulations would not stop global warming but would impose devastating costs on the industry.

The states that have adopted the California regulations include: Connecticut, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington.

Slated to start phasing in as of 2009, the limits would require a 30 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from cars and trucks by 2016, a standard the car makers have maintained would require average fuel economy standards for cars and the lightest category of trucks of 43.7 miles per gallon.

AP-ES-09-12-07 1246EDT