Survey shows city choking on car emissions

Survey shows city choking on car emissions

JAKARTA (JP): The free vehicular emission testing conducted by
the city administration in cooperation with a Swiss agency has
shown that realizing the goal of clean air is still a long way
off, an agency official revealed on Friday.

"There were 7,942 car owners who took part in the program by
checking their cars at 117 service stations. But we only analyzed
6,762 cars with sufficient data," Dollaris Riauaty of
Swisscontact told The Jakarta Post by the phone.

"The results showed there were a lot of things to be done to
improve our air quality, although it didn't portray the real
condition of private cars."

Dollaris said only 2,770 cars met the emission standard set by
the city administration. Based on the guidelines, gasoline-fueled
cars must have a maximum 4.5 percent of carbon monoxide and 1,200
parts per million of hydrocarbon.

"The rest, 3,992 cars or 59 percent, have to be maintained to
meet the emission level standard," she said.

"This showed that the figure of 59 percent was quite a concern
to improve air quality."

She recommended car owners regularly inspect and conduct
maintenance work on their vehicles.

"Cleaner air isn't the only advantage of routine vehicle
inspection and maintenance. We also save fuel," she said.

"We can save our fuel consumption significantly by checking
and maintaining our cars regularly. We can save up to 300 million
liters of fuel each year."

She also said the city administration set a new standard for
vehicular emissions as a way to help improve the air quality in
the capital.

"The old standard is no longer adequate to have cleaner air.
We must impose a stiffer standard," she said.

The new standard divides vehicles into two categories for
those using gasoline and ones which use diesel, broken down
according to their production year.

Gasoline-fueled vehicles are still divided into categories of
combustion technology, according to those which have the fuel
injection system and ones which do not.

Cars with noninjection technology manufactured before 1985
must have a maximum 4 percent carbon monoxide emission and 1,000
parts per million of hydrocarbon, those produced between 1986 to
1995 must have a maximum 3.5 percent and 800 parts per million
and cars manufactured after 1996 must meet the standard of 3
percent and 700 parts per million.

For vehicles equipped with the injection system, there is a
stricter limit.

It demands a maximum 3 percent carbon monoxide and 600 parts
per million of hydrocarbon for cars manufactured between 1986 and
1995, and 2.5 percent and 500 parts per million in vehicles
manufactured after 1996.

Different standards are set for diesel-fueled cars, based on
the percentage of emitted smoke opacity.

Vehicles manufactured before 1985 must have an opacity level
of 50 percent, ones produced from 1986 to 1995 must have 45
percent and cars made after 1996 are required to have 40 percent.

Program director Kartiko Adi Pramono said separately that car
owners must realize they were responsible for pollution caused by
their vehicles.

"According to the 'polluters must pay' principle, car owners
must pay for car maintenance to meet the emission level," he
said.

"We are also designing a system with the city administration
where private car owners could obtain the necessary documents for
their cars only after their vehicles could meet the emission
level." (nvn)