R O A D T O A A R H U S
Six countries in the region hope to arrive at the next Environment for Europe (EFE) Conference scheduled in Aarhus for next year with a clean tank of gas, and thanks to Slovakia's example, such a major advancement may just turn out to be possible.As one of the Sofia Initiatives established during the 1995 EFE Conference in Sofia, the Sofia Initiative on Local Air Quality (SILAQ) was aimed mainly toward achieving two goals - promoting the use of unleaded gasoline throughout the region, and significantly reducing sulfur and particulate emissions. Regarding the first objective, by the beginning of 1995, Slovakia had already independently phased out the use of leaded gasoline so that only unleaded gas was being distributed country-wide, thereby serving as a prime example for other CEE countries involved in SILAQ. But the transformation from lead to no-lead wasn't easy.
Through a series of technological innovations in oil refining and processing, the country successfully began producing its own unleaded gasoline by 1992.
Regarding the domestic car fleet, it was discovered in 1991 that only 3.75 percent of the fleet consumed unleaded gasoline, thereby making it the main obstacle in phasing out lead. At the same time, more than 70 percent of the fleet consisted of automobiles built to run on nothing but leaded gasoline which, in technical terms, meant that their 'exhaust valve seats' were composed of 'soft' materials.
In response, Slovak researchers divided the fleet into three main groups - cars with "soft" valve seats which could not use unleaded gasoline (55-60 percent of the car fleet), cars with "hardened" exhaust valve seats but without catalytic converters (CCs) which could but need not use unleaded gasoline (35-40 percent) and cars equipped with CCs which had to use unleaded gasoline (less than 5 percent). Researchers realized that the only possible solution to the car fleet obstacle was the application of an adequate additive into the gasoline which could protect the exhaust valve seats from wearing out. Other important requirements for such an additive included that it: not pose a health hazard (non-toxic, non-carcinogen, non-mutagenic); not have a harmful effect on the efficiency of CCs; be compatible with leaded gasoline; and be compatible with other additives used in gasoline.
All these requirements were fulfilled by the new additive with the trade name ANABEX99, developed by the Slovak-based joint-stock company, Slovnaft VURUP, the existence of which has led to the rise of local unleaded gasoline as the universal unleaded gasoline for the whole car fleet.
To make up for the limited knowledge of motorists toward unleaded gas, a gradual transition process was implemented to provide enough time to intensively publicize the environmental and health benefits of the new products in the media. Motorists were further educated through the use of advertising, seminars, opinion polls, and consumer questionnaires, while training was provided to all walks of life, from filling station staff to pubic opinion makers such as journalists and public activists. Consumers were also able to take financial advantage with a price reduction of 0.40 to 0.60 Slovak crowns/liter for the unleaded gasoline.
In Parliament, a strong environmental lobby provided the foundations for enacting favorable economic conditions for the production and use of environmentally sound fuels in a time when legislation to regulate this area of industry did not exist. Furthermore, all of these actions were supported by the development and enforcement of new legislation including the Clean Air Act, standards for ambient air and fuel quality, technical standards for new vehicles and economic instruments. Other changes were that new vehicles were required to have 3-way CCs, consumption taxes for unleaded gasoline became 10 percent lower than for leaded gas, road taxes for new cars which fulfill emission standards with 3-way CCs were reduced by 50 percent for a period of two years, and the value-added tax on CCs was reduced from 25 percent to six percent.
The result of all of these efforts is that lead emissions to the atmosphere have been reduced considerably as have lead concentrations in ambient air - in Bratislava, levels dropped 83 percent by 1994. A secondary positive result is that emissions of halogen compounds (chloroalkanes and bromoalkanes, which were used in leaded gasoline in the form of lead scavengers) to the atmosphere were also reduced.
Two Working Group meetings are to be organized by the REC as well as two Regional Workshops, the first on Phasing out Lead in Gasoline having been conducted last June, and Workshop 2 on Reducing Sulfur Oxides and Particulate Emissions scheduled for late November. Finally, the REC will assist in presenting the program to the next Environment for Europe Conference in Aarhus next year by selecting and contracting a team of international consultants to prepare synthesis report(s) for release at the Conference, who will get there, of course, energized by unleaded gas.