Let’s
End The VET In Kentucky
by George
Baumler
The VET (Vehicle Emissions Test) is under attack, and for good reason.
The program in place for over ten years is fast outliving its
usefulness. The reasons is
that the automobiles of today are 90% cleaner than their predecessors of
twenty or more years ago and the no-lead fuels that today’s cars use
are less polluting. In the 70s, cars and trucks accounted for around 37%
of VOC (Volatile Organic Compounds) and about 22% NOx (Nitrous Oxides)
emissions. In 1999, those figures fell to 23% VOCs and 18% Noxs in spite
of the fact that the miles driven daily have more than doubled.
Stationary sources (Factories and Power plants) account for over
67% of the pollutants generated today.
Cars built after 1980 pass the VET at a rate of 94.3%.
Automobiles that are older make up a dwindling percentage of the
total cars on the roadway. The
APCD (Air Pollution Control District) and the VET program tout that the
VET removes 1700 tons of pollutants annually, the figure is based on
computer models and is suspect. (My
dog has prevented $150,0000,0000.00 in neighborhood burglaries using a
similar computer model.)
The
so called bargain price Jefferson County motorists pay doesn’t include
the obvious intrusion upon the citizens time or the expense that a small
business owner incurs when he is obligated to hire a driver for an
unproductive trip to the VET facility.
The bargain touted is only a bargain if measured against the
outrageous fees motorists in other communities are forced to pay.
(Can we be far behind?) Bargains
like the VET we can do without.
Louisville’s
air has been in compliance for the past three years in spite of
protestations to the contrary. The
States of Florida and Minnesota have seen fit to end their tailpipe
emissions testing programs via acts of their governors and legislatures.
In both states, the testing companies and their lackeys lobbied
to continue the testing programs there.
The courageous legislature in Florida stood up to threats and
blackmail of having their road funds cut and voted to end the tailpipe
tests in that state. In
Minnesota, the charismatic Governor Ventura saw no good coming from
their testing program and ended it shortly after taking office.
Hopefully, the Kentucky legislature will have the fortitude to do
likewise.
To
separate the facts from the fiction, check out the site below:
http://www.aaa.com/news12/Releases/Auto/auto59c.html
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