China releases Five New National Vehicle Emission Standards Today

VECC-SEPA 10am April 27, 2005

The State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) promulgated five new national standards on vehicle pollution on April 27^th, 2005. It is the ultimate choice and effective measure to solve vehicle emission pollution problems by formulating and implementing stricter emission standards and reducing emission, said LuoYi, deputy head, Department of Science, Technology and Standards of SEPA. New standards were formulated according to China's vehicle emission pollution conditions, and the demand of development and environmental protection.

The 5 new standards include Limits and Measurement Methods for Pollutants from Light-Duty Vehicles (Phase III, IV) (i.e. No. !,! standards for light-duty vehicles in China), Limits and Measurement Methods for Emissions from Crankcase of Heavy-Duty Vehicles Equipped by Spark-Ignition Engines, Limits and Measurement Methods for Emissions from Fuel Evaporation of Heavy-Duty Vehicles Equipped by Spark-Ignition Engines and Limits and Measurement Methods for Noise from Motorcycles and Mopeds at Accelerated Speed. The No. ! emission standards for light-duty vehicles will come into force on July 1,2007, other standards will be in effect on July 1, 2005. As these new standards step in enforcement, the current 9 emission standards and measurement methods standards for No. II light-duty vehicles will be replaced by the new standards.

"The new standards for light-duty, heavy-duty vehicles and motorcycles and mopeds, regulates not only emission limits of pollutants but also the requirements of implementation and supervision." LuoYi said, "comparing with the No. ! standards, the No. !, ! standards for light-duty vehicles make significant changes in technical contents such as further lowering emission limit values, adding requirements of onboard diagnosis system to ensure the stability of complying with the emission limit values and secure the durability of emission control system, as well as prescribing new fuel property specifications suitable to China's conditions of vehicle fuel characteristics."

As China's vehicle production and population increase rapidly in recent years, exhaust gas and noise emitted by vehicles have brought extensive concern from the society. Automobile manufacturing technology level in China is not good enough, resulting in the large amount of vehicle emission pollutants and low durability of emission control performances; the sharp increase of pollutants emission amount by fast growth of automobiles population impairs urban ambient air quality improvement. Vehicle emission has become the first important air pollution source in some large cities, pointed out by Luo Yi.

Environment capacity will to a great extent limit the increase of vehicle population. If we want to have more vehicles in a certain environment capacity, we have to reduce individual vehicle emission load, i.e. to comply with the emission control regulations and standards. The promulgation of the new emission standards symbolizes a higher level of China's vehicle emission control. Low, even zero emission vehicles will be the future development direction of China's auto industry. To implement the No. III and IV emission standards will have great and proactive significance to future vehicle emission control work and enhance the competence of China's domestically produced vehicles, according to Luo Yi.