Washington Emmisions Legisltation

[jeffandre]

The reality is that fossil fuels burned in older cars lead to increased levels of pollution in various forms, so while I do agree that ANYTHING that burns voluminous amounts of fossil fuels should be tested, the parts on the vehicle in question should not matter, ONLY WHAT COMES OUT OF THE TAILPIPE! I work for an oil refinery, prior to that a power plant, so I know all too well the realities of combustion processes and the real damage these processes do to the environment.



I say we find a way to get the government to test only the emissions, not the parts we have on our cars. I would bet that most of the better cars have fairly complete combustion and less pollutants than the stock versions of the same cars. Trust me, the whole thing is going to get worse and worse over time, never better, so let's live with it and make it work for us! I would bet that by the time I retire (15-20 years) even the more lenient states will have toughened up considerably. The environment is the future, let's work to be a part of the solution and not stay stuck in the mindset of previous generations...

[nancejd]

What's really interesting is that you can go to the EPAs web site and check what the air quality in your area is at any given moment. The best rating they give is "good", guess where every station Washington is at?

My biggest objection to all of this is that the result of it is irrelevant. So what if a couple of thousand cars are burning cleaner. The total pollution a new car puts out exceeds what my '69 Camaro puts out (esppecially since it is sans engine right now). I just don't drive it anywhere near the same amount of miles. The underhood check is certainly the worst part of the California emissions standards though. If it passes the tailpipe test, then have at it.

What is the actual cost of all of this stuff? I bet you it raises the price of a car. What about the system to administer it? Who actually wants it in the first place? I'm not too worried, I don't think man can destroy the planet, the worst thing he can do is kill himself off, and how bad would that be?