Air Care Colorado

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 14, 2000

Cooperative Effort Aims To Put A "Cap" On Summertime Air Pollution

DENVER -- Motorists in the Denver-metropolitan area who have a faulty gas cap on their vehicle or simply are missing a cap will receive a new one free or a voucher good toward the purchase of a replacement beginning June 15 as part of an effort to curb ozone pollution along Colorado’s Front Range.

Ken Lloyd, executive director of the Regional Air Quality Council, said properly-working gas caps are an important component of the fight against ozone pollution because all evaporative emissions can account for up to six percent of emissions on any given day in the Denver metropolitan area.

"Evaporative emissions from faulty and missing gas caps can amount to nearly three tons of air pollution per day on their own," Lloyd said. "Pollutants in evaporative emissions lead to ground-level ozone formation, a type of air pollution that plagues the region during the critical hot summer months."

As a result, a public-private partnership, spearheaded by the Regional Air Quality Council, is working to reduce these unnecessary emissions by initiating a gas cap exchange at all 15 Air Care Colorado centralized emissions testing stations operated by Envirotest Systems Corp., and 21 independent stations which provide tests for 1981-and-older vehicles.

The summertime "Put a Cap on Ozone" campaign begins Thursday, June 15, and will continue through Friday, September 15, or until all gas caps have been distributed.

"When a gas cap doesn’t create the proper seal or is missing from a vehicle entirely, unnecessary emissions escape into our atmosphere," Lloyd said. "If these faulty or missing caps are replaced, we can take an important step toward reducing emissions and combating our summertime pollution problem."

The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment recently implemented new requirements that fail vehicles undergoing an emissions test if their gas cap is not operating properly. Previously, the gas cap test was an "advisory" test only, meaning motorists were informed of the defective cap at the time of the procedure but did not fail the test. Motorists whose vehicles do not have a gas cap always have failed the emissions test.

Shirleen Tucker, manager of the State Health Department’s Mobile Sources Program, said the gas cap regulations have been made mandatory because ground-level ozone is a harmful pollutant that can affect the health of all Coloradans, especially the very young, the elderly and those who suffer from respiratory ailments like asthma. However, she noted, ground-level ozone should not be confused with the ozone layer in the upper atmosphere that provides a necessary protection from the harmful ultra-violet rays of the sun.

"Ozone up high in the atmosphere gives us a layer of protection that we need," Tucker said. "But nearby, at breathable levels, it is a particularly harmful lung irritant. Weather and human activity conspire to manufacture ground-level ozone as the weather gets warmer."

Ground-level ozone is created when other pollutants like nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds are released into the atmosphere. These pollutants react photochemically in the presence of sunlight to create ozone.

The Denver-metropolitan area is in danger of violating new federal and state health-based ozone pollution standards, which are based on a three-year average. Although the area currently complies with the standards, a summer of high ground-level ozone readings could earn the area "nonattainment" status from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and trigger costly pollution control requirements.

"Nonattainment status could result in the potential loss of federal highway funds, delaying many important transportation projects," said state Transportation Commissioner Dan Stuart. "If projects are delayed and congestion increases, it could make air quality worse. That is why the Colorado Department of Transportation felt it was important to be a partner in this effort."

Air pollution monitors in the area show that ground-level ozone concentrations are barely within federal guidelines. In fact, the area is within two parts per billion of violating the standards. Based on the three-year average calculation, the summer of 2000 is vital because it will replace the summer of 1997 - a pretty clean one -- in the calculation.

During the "Put a Cap on Ozone" program, motorists who fail the gas cap portion of the emissions test at any emissions station in the Denver-metropolitan area will either receive a new one on the spot or be given a $5 voucher good toward the purchase of a new gas cap at participating area NAPA Auto Parts retail outlets. New gas caps range in retail price from less than $5 to $15.

Following gas cap replacement, all vehicles which previously had failed the emissions test will be required to repeat all phases of the emissions testing procedure.

"I think this program is a real winner for motorists," said Major Hearn, Jr., general manager for Envirotest Systems in Colorado. "Not only will customers with bad or missing gas caps get one for free, but also that new gas cap is going to save them money in the long run. If your gas cap is leaking, or worse, if you are driving around with no gas cap, your gas mileage is reduced. So, people who receive a free gas cap in the testing lanes will probably see increased gas mileage as an added bonus."

Program sponsors encourage all motorists to ensure that they have good, tight-fitting gas caps on all their vehicles even if they are not due for an emissions test soon. Many caps will "click" when replaced after refueling – a sign to the motorist that it fits snugly. Of course, motorists whose vehicles are missing gas caps entirely should replace them immediately.

Funds for the $80,000 gas-cap exchange program are being provided by the Colorado Department of Transportation and Envirotest Systems Corp. NAPA Auto Parts has agreed to provide the approximately 12,000 gas caps at a reduced cost and to honor the vouchers at all area NAPA retail outlets, most of which are within a mile or two of emissions testing stations.

For more information on the "Put a Cap on Ozone" program, contact the Regional Air Quality Council at 303-629-5450. All informational materials regarding the program are available via the Internet at www.aircarecolorado.com/mediakit/.