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Posted on  

September 20, 2001

EPA Orders Cut in Snowmobile, Boat, ATV Emissions

The Environmental Protection Agency on Wednesday proposed to curb emissions from snowmobiles, diesel-powered boats, off-road motorcycles and all-terrain vehicles to help reduce pollution, especially in national parks.

New limits will be established for carbon monoxide and nitrogen oxides emitted by the engines, the EPA said.

``If left unregulated, pollution from these sources will continue to increase, becoming a larger part of the overall mobile source pollution,'' EPA Administrator Christine Todd Whitman (news - web sites) said in statement.

``This action will not only protect public health, but will help to restore the view of our nation's treasured scenic parks and wilderness areas,'' she added.

The variety of engines and vehicles covered by the EPA plan account for roughly 13 percent of mobile source hydrocarbon emissions.

The new limits would cut the vehicles' carbon monoxide emissions up to 56 percent and nitrogen oxides up to nearly 80 percent, the EPA said.

Environmental groups have long sought stricter standards for the more than 1.6 million snowmobiles used by Americans for winter recreation. The machines are permitted in more than two dozen national parks, including Yellowstone National Park and Voyageurs National Park.

Some green groups contend that one hour on a single snowmobile emits roughly as much hydrocarbon pollution as driving a car for a year. They also say that snowmobiles used near the Old Faithful geyser create more pollution in a weekend than a year's worth of automobile traffic through the park.

The EPA began preparing a proposal to limit emissions of snowmobiles several years ago after Congress ordered it to study the pollution produced by engines of all kinds. The agency faced a court-ordered deadline of September 14, 2001 to issue a proposed rule.

The EPA plan for snowmobiles would require a 30 percent cut in emissions by 2006 and by 50 percent by 2010.

Manufacturers of snowmobiles had sought a lengthy phase-in period for new curbs on emissions, saying time was needed to develop cleaner engines. The companies say they spend millions of dollars annually on new technology and the use of ethanol to help curb emissions.

The stricter emission limits proposed by the EPA include the following:

+ Snowmobiles will have to cut hydrocarbon and carbon monoxide emissions by 30 percent in 2006 and by 50 percent in 2010.

+ Heavy, non-road machinery engines will adopt a standard in 2004 already set by California several years ago. The standard will be further tightened in 2008.

+ Recreational boats' diesel engines will adopt the same standards already applied to commercial marine engines, with two years of extra time for manufacturers to adapt emissions control technology.

+ Off-road motorcycles and all-terrain vehicles will be ''encouraged'' to switch from two-stroke engines to four-stroke engines in 2006. In addition, all-terrain vehicles would also need to meet a stricter limit beginning in 2009.

Public hearings will be held in Washington on October 24, and in Denver, Colorado, on October 30 on the new proposal.

The EPA also said it planned to issue a proposal to restrict emissions for motorcycles used on highways and gasoline-power pleasure boats within the next few months.

The agency has already adopted stricter emission standards for personal watercraft such as Jet Skis that will go into effect in 2006.

 

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