The California Air Resources Board today announced a $299,000 settlement with PPG Industries Inc., a global manufacturer of paints, coatings and specialty materials headquartered in Pittsburgh, PA for the company’s violation of state air quality regulations.
PPG sold, supplied and offered for sale non-compliant paint thinners and aerosol clear-coating products that were manufactured for use in California, but which exceeded the state’s air quality requirements for concentrations of volatile organic compounds.
“CARB is committed to enforcing consumer product rules to improve the air we all breathe and to help California meet federal ozone standards that protect public health,” CARB head of enforcement Todd Sax said. “Manufacturers such as PPG carry the greatest responsibility of supplying Californians with consumer products that comply with emissions standards. Their attention to the legal requirements related to the manufacture, importation and distribution of products significantly impacts California’s air quality.”
The PPG products contained concentrations of volatile organic compounds (VOCs*) and aromatic compounds that exceeded state standards, a CARB investigation showed. Furthermore, the aerosol coating products exceeded the reactivity limit for clear coating as specified in state regulation. Together, the violations resulted in 5.42 tons of excess VOC emissions, 15.15 tons of excess aromatic compounds, and the formation of 2.98 tons of excess ground-level ozone.
PPG cooperated fully CARB said to resolve this matter and ceased sales of the noncompliant products to come into compliance with the state’s air quality regulations. Of the $299,000 that PPG agreed to pay, $149,800 will be deposited into CARB’s Air Pollution Control Fund, which funds projects and research to improve air quality. The remaining $149,200 will fund a supplemental environment project titled “Side Street Projects – Woodworking Bus.” The project will fund the purchase of new buses to replace older diesel-powered buses used for mobile classrooms. The mobile classrooms are used to teach woodworking skills to elementary school students.
*VOCs are gases released from solid or liquid products (everything from paint to hair spray), which contribute to ozone formation. An element of smog, ozone causes respiratory health effects including lung irritation, shortness of breath and coughing, and can aggravate asthma and other lung diseases. In 2005, after an extensive review of the scientific literature, CARB approved an eight-hour standard for ozone of 0.070 ppm and retained the one-hour 0.09 ppm standard previously established in 1987. Evidence from the reviewed studies indicates that significant harmful health effects could occur among both adults and children if exposed to levels above these standards. On October 1, 2015, the U.S. EPA lowered the national eight-hour standard from 0.075 ppm to 0.070 ppm.
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.
CARB Fines PPG for Products Exceeding Air Quality Rules
The California Air Resources Board today announced a $299,000 settlement with PPG Industries Inc., a global manufacturer of paints, coatings and specialty materials headquartered in Pittsburgh, PA for the company’s violation of state air quality regulations.
PPG sold, supplied and offered for sale non-compliant paint thinners and aerosol clear-coating products that were manufactured for use in California, but which exceeded the state’s air quality requirements for concentrations of volatile organic compounds.
“CARB is committed to enforcing consumer product rules to improve the air we all breathe and to help California meet federal ozone standards that protect public health,” CARB head of enforcement Todd Sax said. “Manufacturers such as PPG carry the greatest responsibility of supplying Californians with consumer products that comply with emissions standards. Their attention to the legal requirements related to the manufacture, importation and distribution of products significantly impacts California’s air quality.”
The PPG products contained concentrations of volatile organic compounds (VOCs*) and aromatic compounds that exceeded state standards, a CARB investigation showed. Furthermore, the aerosol coating products exceeded the reactivity limit for clear coating as specified in state regulation. Together, the violations resulted in 5.42 tons of excess VOC emissions, 15.15 tons of excess aromatic compounds, and the formation of 2.98 tons of excess ground-level ozone.
PPG cooperated fully CARB said to resolve this matter and ceased sales of the noncompliant products to come into compliance with the state’s air quality regulations. Of the $299,000 that PPG agreed to pay, $149,800 will be deposited into CARB’s Air Pollution Control Fund, which funds projects and research to improve air quality. The remaining $149,200 will fund a supplemental environment project titled “Side Street Projects – Woodworking Bus.” The project will fund the purchase of new buses to replace older diesel-powered buses used for mobile classrooms. The mobile classrooms are used to teach woodworking skills to elementary school students.
*VOCs are gases released from solid or liquid products (everything from paint to hair spray), which contribute to ozone formation. An element of smog, ozone causes respiratory health effects including lung irritation, shortness of breath and coughing, and can aggravate asthma and other lung diseases. In 2005, after an extensive review of the scientific literature, CARB approved an eight-hour standard for ozone of 0.070 ppm and retained the one-hour 0.09 ppm standard previously established in 1987. Evidence from the reviewed studies indicates that significant harmful health effects could occur among both adults and children if exposed to levels above these standards. On October 1, 2015, the U.S. EPA lowered the national eight-hour standard from 0.075 ppm to 0.070 ppm.
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.