Air quality penalty charges 'could be dropped'

A federal ozone standard has been implemented in San Joaquin Valley, California, which could drastically reduce annual charges to motorists in the region, reports the Bakersfield Californian. Currently motorists in the valley are subjected to a $29 million (£18 million) penalty charge every year as a result of the high levels of smog that are caused by cars' combustion engines.

It is expected that the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District's governing board will soon vote on whether to ask for the penalty charges to be lifted, reports the news provider. Many seem to think that it is likely that the vote will go through and the request will be taken to the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). If the EPA agree with the proposal, the large penalty charges, which are mostly paid through registration fees for automobiles in the area, could be reduced or removed.

Seyed Sadredin, executive director of the eight-county air district, told the news provider: "This is something that for a long time I didn't think would happen in my lifetime. We are the first region in the nation to go from an 'extreme' nonattainment classification to attainment of the one-hour ozone standard. It has never happened in the nation's history."

The district was given the "extreme" classification by the EPA in 2004 after determining that standards in the Valley couldn't be met with the current technology available, Mr Sadredin told the news provider. In order to meet with the air quality standards set in place by the EPA, none of the ozone monitors that are present in the valley can read 125 parts of ozone per billion more than three times within a 12-month period.

The first time that the valley's air quality was not higher than this level for a period of one hour, since records began, was in August 2011. In contrast the ozone levels that were recorded in August 1996 exceeded the limit 18 times in total, according to the news provider.