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Cleaning Off-Road Air: EPA 2008 Rule Lowers Equipment Emissions

Posted on: Tuesday, 13 June 2006, 12:00 CDT

By Ian Berry, Chattanooga Times/Free Press, Tenn.

Jun. 13--As power plant emissions fall and many metropolitan areas enact vehicle testing, environmentalists say cleaning up other emissions sources such as construction and farm equipment is the next opportunity to clean the air.

These "off-road" diesel pollution sources accounted for 15.6 percent of nitrogen oxide emissions in Tennessee in 1999, according to the Tennessee Valley Authority. That number is projected to be 24.2 percent by next year, although the actual number of tons per day would increase only from 315 to 348. "Transportation is becoming a greater focus and in particular the off-road sources, which are behind," said Wayne Davis, an environmental engineer with the University of Tennessee.

Nitrogen oxide is a key ingredient in ground-level ozone, which can damage the lungs. The off-road sources also are a major emitter of fine particulate matter, which in some cases carries carcinogens and can enter the bloodstream.

New U.S. Environmental Protection Agency regulations being phased in beginning in 2008 will require new equipment be built to burn more cleanly. The new rules won't be fully enacted for almost 25 years.

The Komatsu plant on Signal Mountain Road now installs "Tier 3" diesel engines that burn more cleanly and in some cases are more than a year ahead of the requirements, said Jim Fuqua, human resources director. Mr. Fuqua said he can tell the difference.

"I've personally noticed the engine noise level is so much quieter," he said. "It's a smoother, quieter engine."

Mr. Fuqua said the plant produces on average 12 excavators per day, as well as one large dump truck. Komatsu doesn't produce the engines but installs them into its vehicles.

Bulldozers, tractors, leaf blowers, chain saws, roadgraders and diesel generators at job sites are among the types of equipment affected by the EPA's off-road requirements. All told, more than 650,000 pieces of equipment are sold annually in the United States that would fall under the rule, and about 6 million pieces now are in use.

Steve Parkhurst, a senior air quality specialist at TVA, said the off-road sources are particularly conducive to creation of ozone because they also release organic compounds, the second key ingredient in ozone. The third is sunlight.

He said attention has shifted to off-road sources, even though their emissions aren't increasing, because other sources' emissions are going down.

"You tend to look at those things that were less obvious before," Mr. Parkhurst said.

However, EPA's guidelines are being phased in, and the agency projects the benefit to air quality won't be felt fully until 2030. That's because much of the current equipment will remain in use for many years, if not decades. As an example, Mr. Parkhurst noted he still uses a 40-horsepower tractor on his farm that dates back to 1974. "It's still running, and I'm not going to change it as long as it's working," Mr. Parkhurst said.

Allen Perko, a regional sales manager for Power Equipment Co., a local Komatsu distributor, said the larger equipment can last 20 years if taken care of properly.

"It's quite a trick to reduce emissions and maintain fuel economy," Mr. Perko said. "It's not easy, and I think a lot of people think it is." By 2030, when the EPA projects the current fleet with older engines will have turned over fully, the environment will be spared 738,000 tons of nitrogen oxide annually, officials have said. That would be equivalent to taking 700,000 diesel trucks off the road.

States are prohibited from mandating clean engine technology or fuels earlier than the EPA, but the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation has established a "working group" to seek ways to reduce emissions from diesel engines.

"We're doing everything we can for a voluntary incentive program," said Quincy Styke, TDEC's air pollution control deputy director.

The state is looking for ways to retrofit old off-road diesel equipment to make it burn more cleanly, he said. One option, he said, would be to create a pool of money through title transfer fees to pay for private operators to retrofit their equipment.

"We're just looking to see if that's an idea that might be for Tennessee," Mr. Styke said.

Dr. Davis said that although the slow pace at which the federal regulations take effect isn't a problem in much of the nation, he would prefer swifter action in places with air quality problems such as Chattanooga and Knoxville.

But both he and Mr. Parkhurst agreed that in general air quality is improving.

"Everyone recognizes it takes a long time to improve air quality," Mr. Parkhurst said. "It's a gradual thing."

E-mail Ian Berry at iberry@timesfreepress.com BURNING CLEANER Diesel engines for off-road vehicles such as farm and construction equipment will account for almost onequarter of nitrogen oxide pollution by next year, according to the Tennessee Valley Authority. Here are some of the steps being taken in response: EPA mandates being phased in starting in 2008 will require cleaner-burning engines on new equipment. The rules will be phased in through 2015, and it will take until 2030 for the older, dirtier equipment to be phased out.

TDEC is encouraging the use of biodiesel and is considering ways to help private operators retrofit their old equipment, which in many cases can last decades.

Komatsu is installing newer engines in its vehicles to comply with the EPA standards, in some cases months ahead of schedule.

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Copyright (c) 2006, Chattanooga Times/Free Press, Tenn.

Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.

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Source: Chattanooga Times/Free Press

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