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Inspections aimed at better air quality

Thursday, May 08, 2003

By Don Hopey, Post-Gazette Staff Writer

An agreement that clears the air on vehicle emissions inspections will extend some form of diagnostic testing to most counties in the state but, according to state politicians and bureaucrats worried about election day road rage, have minimal effect on most drivers.

The agreement announced yesterday in Harrisburg commits the state to implementing auto emissions inspections mandated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to improve air quality through a variety of programs in different regions of the state.

In doing so the state will rely heavily on so-called "on-board diagnostic" systems that have been installed on all vehicles manufactured since 1996. The technology allows a mechanic to attach a cable to a vehicle's on-board computer and download information that can be used to diagnose engine problems that cause increased emissions.

In Allegheny, Beaver, Washington and Westmoreland counties, the current annual tailpipe testing for 1996 and newer vehicles will be replaced by the on-board diagnostic test and a gas cap check. The new inspections will be phased in between April and June 2004.

Most pre-1996 vehicles in the four-county region will still be required to get an annual tailpipe test, a gas cap test and visual anti-tampering check. The anti-tampering check assures that key parts of the car's emissions control system, such as the catalytic converter, have not been removed.

Similar upgrades to vehicle inspections will also occur in the Philadelphia region where new pass-fail standards -- so-called "cutpoints" -- will also be implemented.

"It is clear that we had to do something with our emissions testing program to cut pollution," said state Transportation Secretary Allen Biehler. "This agreement will help us come into compliance and remove the threat of serious sanctions from the federal government.

"Better still, it will give us cleaner, healthier air without unduly burdening Pennsylvania's drivers. For the great majority of Pennsylvanians, the new inspection program will not be noticeably different from the old one."

"A great deal has already been accomplished through industry, commercial and mobile sources to improve Pennsylvania's air quality since the first Emissions Inspection and Maintenance program was implemented here in 1984 and enhanced in 1997, but we need to do more," said acting Environmental Protection Secretary Kathleen McGinty.

Yesterday's agreement settles two pending lawsuits and implements a December ruling on a third. The ruling, by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, ordered the state to put the emissions inspection programs into effect by September in 16 counties that don't have them now.

Earlier, in 2002, Citizens for Pennsylvania's Future and the Clean Air Council sued the state because of its slow implementation of auto inspection procedures mandated by the EPA.

"This settlement doesn't rely solely on on-board testing and it's an actual program, not a promise of one like we were hearing before," said Jeanne Clark, spokeswoman for PennFuture. "Everybody gets some sort of program and everybody gets to benefit from cleaner air."

Clark said that as of February, PennDOT and the DEP were still talking about appealing December's court decision, but a major shift occurred shortly after Gov. Ed Rendell took office.

"We could have continued to fight in court and not move any closer to cleaner air," Clark said. "But both new secretaries seemed very interested in seeing a settlement happen."

The agreement allows for different emissions inspections in different regions depending on that region's air quality. Regions with poorer air will conduct more extensive diagnostic inspections for vehicle emissions.

Pennsylvania was required to adopt an enhanced emissions testing program to meet federal clean air requirements in its most polluted regions and to reduce unhealthy smog during hot summer months. Cars and trucks produce about one-third of the hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides that produce smog.

Enhanced vehicle inspections and maintenance programs went into effect in five Philadelphia area counties and in Allegheny, Washington, Beaver and Westmoreland counties in 1997.

In the Pittsburgh region, the inspections were part of emissions reduction efforts that included nitrogen oxide emission reductions by utilities and use of slow-evaporating gasoline and gas pump vapor controls. Together, these actions improved air quality enough for the federal Environmental Protection Agency to redesignate the region in 2001 as being in attainment of federal smog standards.

As with the program currently in place in the Pittsburgh and Philadelphia regions, PennDOT said emissions inspections will be required once per year in conjunction with the annual safety inspection.

Emissions inspections will be available at any certified private garage or dealer.

Don Hopey can be reached at dhopey@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1983.