Project Description:

The Paso del Norte air basin currently exceeds U.S. and Mexican ambient air quality standards for ozone, PM and CO.  Mobile source emissions are a principle contributor to  ozone and CO air quality problems, representing 65% of basin wide VOC (HC) emissions, 50% of basin wide NOx emissions and 90% of basin wide CO emissions. 

The vehicle fleet is comprised of older vehicles: 63% of the vehicles in Juarez and 34% of El Paso vehicles are pre-1987.  In 1997, the Juarez vehicle inspection program had a 66% pass/fail ratio of the 103,308 vehicles that went to the 43 vehicle verification centers.  That same year, El Paso's pass/fail ratio was 86% of a total of 287,574 vehicles that were inspected. 

This project proposes multiple components:

i) implement and enforce the Ciudad Juarez Vehicle Emissions Verification Program;

ii) improve inspection pass/fail ratio;

iii) increase the stringency of the El Paso I/M program such as lowering the inspection failure cutpoint;

iv) decrease pollution control equipment tampering rate;

v) extend the I/M program to Do?a Ana County;

vi) develop a program with El Paso businesses to encourage residents of Do?a Ana County who are employed in El Paso to have their vehicles inspected;

vii) promote vehicle inspections at the work site;

viii) extend and / or implement a program to detect and / or fine vehicles with ostensibly high tail-pipe emissions;

ix) expand the use of remote sensing to measure vehicle emissions; and 

x) expand auto mechanic "Train the Trainer" program.

Cost/Cost Effectiveness:

The greatest opportunity  to improve the air quality in the Paso del Norte air basin lies in improving the performance of gasoline powered motors. Coordination between state and municipal administrations is important in the enforcement of transit laws. On the other hand,  community participation is feasible once this coordination is linked to a strategy of participation from the business sector, as well as non-governmental organizations to procure funds for training of mechanics, environmental education, diagnostics and tuning of motors.
To improve the pass/fail ratio of the verification program the total expenditure for tuning and increasing the efficiency of combustion for 25% of the vehicle fleet in Cd. Juarez, with an average cost of $500 pesos per vehicle, will be $85 million pesos ($9.4 Million US).

For El Paso and Doña Ana County, the cost is estimated at $2.8 million dollars. To minimize the incidence of tampering with control devices, it is expected that through the efficiency of the Vehicle Importation Program during period of at least three years, with 140 vehicles daily, the "junk" vehicle fleet will be renovated. With respect to the RSD 2000 strategy, the cost for Cd. Juarez is $90, 000 pesos per year ($10,000 US). Lastly, the extension of the "Train the Trainer" Program the expenditure for the next two years would be $400,000 pesos ($44,000-US).

Significance of Impact:

  Maintaining a high pass/ fail ratio for the more than 735,000 vehicles (365,000 from Cd. Juárez, 350,000 from El Paso County and 20,000 from Sunland Park), coupled with the fact that  vehicle emissions contribute significantly to the total emissions in the Paso del Norte air basin, this project alone offers the opportunity to significantly reduce emissions of CO and ozone precursors. Its contribution to air quality improvement can be estimated through atmospheric models. As a follow-up to the summer ozone study, 1996 - 1997, the ozone model for the air basin is scheduled to be run during 1999. The Air Quality Management Plan for Cd. Juárez assumes that this measure will reduce emissions for each of the vehicle pollutants by 25%, which represents approximately: 116,000 tons of CO and 14,000 tons of HC per year. Full enforcement of the Current Motorist Choice I/M program for El Paso could expect reductions of up to 18,750 tons of CO and 3,000 tons of HC per year. There is an opportunity for further reduction of CO and HC within the airbasin if Do?a Ana County establishes a vehicle I/M 

Program Feasibility:

  The feasibility of implementing this program is high from a technical and administrative perspective.  Work is foreseen with state environmental agencies with the aim of developing a program in Doña Ana County and to coordinate the operations at the Municipal level in Cd. Juarez. Training courses are being conducted for auto mechanic instructors, vehicle emissions verification inspectors and mechanics in Cd. Juarez. The Ciudad Juarez's Municipal Law of Ecology is relied upon, as it includes other actions like that of voluntary inspectors and diagnostic centers.

Are issues of fairness addressed?

Yes, basin - wide projects are been proposed.