The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said today it will collect civil penalties from two companies that allegedly sold illegal “defeat devices” that are designed to make automobile emission controls inoperative, in violation of the federal Clean Air Act. Baillie Diesel Inc. of Nixa, Missouri, agreed to pay $18,000. D & K Repair of Rock Valley, Iowa, will pay $90,000. As part of the settlements, the companies agreed to destroy their inventories of defeat device components. They also certified that they have stopped selling devices that disable vehicle emission controls.
“Cracking down on sellers of illegal defeat devices is a top enforcement priority* for EPA,” said Wendy Lubbe, acting director of EPA Region 7’s Enforcement and Compliance Assurance Division. “These illegal practices contribute to harmful air pollution and impede federal, state, and local efforts to implement air quality standards that protect public health,” said Lubbe.
“Tampering with vehicle engines, including installation of aftermarket defeat devices intended to bypass manufacturer emission controls, results in significantly higher releases of nitrogen oxides and particulate matter, both of which contribute to serious public health problems in the United States,” EPA said.
“These problems include premature mortality, aggravation of respiratory and cardiovascular disease, aggravation of existing asthma, acute respiratory symptoms, chronic bronchitis, and decreased lung function. Numerous studies also link diesel exhaust to increased incidence of lung cancer,” EPA said.
* Stopping aftermarket defeat devices for vehicles and engines is a top priority for EPA. The Agency identified this goal as one of six National Compliance Initiatives in 2019. By making aftermarket defeat devices a national priority, EPA is addressing a significant contributor to air pollution.
According to a study by EPA’s Air Enforcement Division, known sales of defeat devices for certain diesel trucks after 2009 and before 2020 resulted in more than 570,000 tons of excess NOx and 5,000 tons of excess particulate matter (PM) over the lifetime of the trucks.
EPA, through its direct implementation authority, can play a critical role in addressing these important pollutant sources. Title II of the Clean Air Act (CAA) authorizes the EPA to set standards applicable to emissions from a variety of vehicles and engines. Required emission controls often include filters and catalysts installed in the vehicle’s or engine’s exhaust system, as well as calibrations that manage fueling strategy and other operations in the engine itself. The CAA prohibits tampering with emissions controls, as well as manufacturing, selling, and installing aftermarket devices intended to defeat those controls.
The EPA has found numerous companies and individuals that have manufactured and sold both hardware and software specifically designed to defeat required emissions controls on vehicles and engines used on public roads as well as on non-road vehicles and engines. Illegally-modified vehicles and engines contribute substantial excess pollution that harms public health and impedes efforts by the EPA, tribes, states, and local agencies to plan for and attain air quality standards.
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn.
He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe.
Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap.
AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks.
Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.
EPA Fines Iowa, Missouri Sellers of Auto ‘Defeat Devices’
“Cracking down on sellers of illegal defeat devices is a top enforcement priority* for EPA,” said Wendy Lubbe, acting director of EPA Region 7’s Enforcement and Compliance Assurance Division. “These illegal practices contribute to harmful air pollution and impede federal, state, and local efforts to implement air quality standards that protect public health,” said Lubbe.
“Tampering with vehicle engines, including installation of aftermarket defeat devices intended to bypass manufacturer emission controls, results in significantly higher releases of nitrogen oxides and particulate matter, both of which contribute to serious public health problems in the United States,” EPA said.
“These problems include premature mortality, aggravation of respiratory and cardiovascular disease, aggravation of existing asthma, acute respiratory symptoms, chronic bronchitis, and decreased lung function. Numerous studies also link diesel exhaust to increased incidence of lung cancer,” EPA said.
* Stopping aftermarket defeat devices for vehicles and engines is a top priority for EPA. The Agency identified this goal as one of six National Compliance Initiatives in 2019. By making aftermarket defeat devices a national priority, EPA is addressing a significant contributor to air pollution.
According to a study by EPA’s Air Enforcement Division, known sales of defeat devices for certain diesel trucks after 2009 and before 2020 resulted in more than 570,000 tons of excess NOx and 5,000 tons of excess particulate matter (PM) over the lifetime of the trucks.
EPA, through its direct implementation authority, can play a critical role in addressing these important pollutant sources. Title II of the Clean Air Act (CAA) authorizes the EPA to set standards applicable to emissions from a variety of vehicles and engines. Required emission controls often include filters and catalysts installed in the vehicle’s or engine’s exhaust system, as well as calibrations that manage fueling strategy and other operations in the engine itself. The CAA prohibits tampering with emissions controls, as well as manufacturing, selling, and installing aftermarket devices intended to defeat those controls.
The EPA has found numerous companies and individuals that have manufactured and sold both hardware and software specifically designed to defeat required emissions controls on vehicles and engines used on public roads as well as on non-road vehicles and engines. Illegally-modified vehicles and engines contribute substantial excess pollution that harms public health and impedes efforts by the EPA, tribes, states, and local agencies to plan for and attain air quality standards.
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn. He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe. Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap. AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks. Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.