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Volkswagen emissions scandal
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24th September, 2015 -
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24th September, 2015
Washington, DC, USA:
EPA is issuing a notice of violation (NOV) of the Clean Air Act (CAA) to Volkswagen AG, Audi AG, and Volkswagen Group
of America, Inc. (collectively referred to as Volkswagen).
The NOV alleges that four-cylinder Volkswagen and Audi diesel cars from model years 2009-2015 include software that
circumvents EPA emissions standards for certain air pollutants. California is separately issuing an In-Use Compliance
letter to Volkswagen, and EPA and the California Air Resources Board (CARB) have both initiated investigations based on
Volkswagen’s alleged actions.
“Using a defeat device in cars to evade clean air standards is illegal and a threat to public health,” said
Cynthia Giles, Assistant Administrator for the Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. “Working closely with
the California Air Resources Board, EPA is committed to making sure that all automakers play by the same rules. EPA will
continue to investigate these very serious matters.”
“Working with US EPA we are taking this important step to protect public health thanks to the dogged investigations
by our laboratory scientists and staff,” said Air Resources Board Executive Officer Richard Corey. “Our goal now
is to ensure that the affected cars are brought into compliance, to dig more deeply into the extent and implications of
Volkswagen’s efforts to cheat on clean air rules, and to take appropriate further action.”
As described in the NOV, a sophisticated software algorithm on certain Volkswagen vehicles detects when the car is
undergoing official emissions testing, and turns full emissions controls on only during the test. The effectiveness of
these vehicles’ pollution emissions control devices is greatly reduced during all normal driving situations. This results
in cars that meet emissions standards in the laboratory or testing station, but during normal operation, emit nitrogen
oxides, or NOx, at up to 40 times the standard. The software produced by Volkswagen is a “defeat device,” as defined by
the Clean Air Act.
The Clean Air Act requires vehicle manufacturers to certify to EPA that their products will meet applicable federal
emission standards to control air pollution, and every vehicle sold in the U.S. must be covered by an EPA-issued
certificate of conformity. Motor vehicles equipped with defeat devices, which reduce the effectiveness of the emission
control system during normal driving conditions, cannot be certified. By making and selling vehicles with defeat devices
that allowed for higher levels of air emissions than were certified to EPA, Volkswagen violated two important provisions
of the Clean Air Act.
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EPA and CARB uncovered the defeat device software after independent analysis by researchers at West Virginia
University, working with the International Council on Clean Transportation, a non-governmental organisation, raised
questions about emissions levels, and the agencies began further investigations into the issue. In September, after EPA
and CARB demanded an explanation for the identified emission problems, Volkswagen admitted that the cars contained defeat
devices.
NOx pollution contributes to nitrogen dioxide, ground-level ozone, and fine particulate matter. Exposure to these
pollutants has been linked with a range of serious health effects, including increased asthma attacks and other
respiratory illnesses that can be serious enough to send people to the hospital. Exposure to ozone and particulate matter
have also been associated with premature death due to respiratory-related or cardiovascular-related effects. Children,
the elderly, and people with pre-existing respiratory disease are particularly at risk for health effects of these
pollutants.
VW may be liable for civil penalties and injunctive relief for the violations alleged in the NOV.
The allegations cover roughly 482,000 diesel passenger cars sold in the United States since 2008.
Affected diesel models include:
Jetta (MY 2009 – 2015)
Jetta Sportwagen (MY 2009-2014)
Beetle (MY 2012 – 2015)
Beetle Convertible (MY 2012-2015)
Audi A3 (MY 2010 – 2015)
Golf (MY 2010 – 2015)
Golf Sportwagen (MY 2015)
Passat (MY 2012-2015)
It is incumbent upon Volkswagen to initiate the process that will fix the cars’ emissions systems. Car owners should
know that although these vehicles have emissions exceeding standards, these violations do not present a safety hazard and
the cars remain legal to drive and resell. Owners of cars of these models and years do not need to take any action at
this time.
Source: EPA (USA)
E&OE.
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