Nepc annual Report 2014-15

Diesel vehicle emission testing and repair programs

Roads and Maritime Services is not currently operating a Diesel Vehicle Emissions Testing and Repair program.

The development of a test and repair program has been put on hold at the direction of the Commonwealth Department of the Environment, pending resolution of the funding agreement and the finalisation of Recommendation 5 of the 2007 review of the NEPM.

The existing Roads and Maritime Services Heavy Diesel Vehicle Testing Facility is currently used to support the M5 East Tunnel Diesel Retrofit and Repair Initiative (discussed below).

Audited maintenance programs for diesel vehicles

Roads and Maritime Services is currently operating an audited maintenance program known as ‘Clean Fleet’. This was launched in 2006 and currently has approximately 7,000 vehicles participating in the program.

Promotion to increase participation in the program was put on hold, pending resolution of funding with the Commonwealth Department of the Environment. During 2014–15, three new fleets joined this program.

Diesel vehicle retrofit and repair program

Roads and Maritime Services is currently implementing the M5 East Tunnel Diesel Retrofit and Repair Initiative. This initiative started on 1 March 2013 and it is planned that it will continue through to December 2015. The aim of the initiative is to reduce the level of PM₁₀ present in the M5 East tunnel, by removing PM₁₀ exhaust emissions at their source.

This is achieved by identifying smoky vehicles that are frequent users of the M5 East Tunnel through the use of camera technology. Operators of these vehicles are offered a 50 per cent subsidy (up to a capped amount) to repair emissions related engine faults and to install particle traps in the exhaust systems of these vehicles.

During 2014–15, 72 vehicles were identified inside the M5 tunnel emitting excessive air impurities for a continuous period of more than 10 seconds. This resulted in 46 penalty notices and 69 invitation letters to join the repair and retrofit initiative being sent to the operators of the identified vehicles. Since the inception of this program 17 signed participation agreements have been received.

Clean Machine Program (non-road diesel engines)

The Environment Protection Authority Clean Machine Program (which commenced in 2011) concluded in June 2015. The program was executed through partnerships with local councils and private businesses to develop procurement of cleaner diesel equipment, best worksite practice for diesel emissions management and to retrofit heavily polluting equipment with subsidised exhaust after-treatment devices. Program partners were eligible for up to 90 per cent of co-funding for the retrofitting of older and more polluting diesel equipment.

By the end of June 2015, more than 40 organisations had participated in the program and 145 diesel machines were retrofitted. Retrofits have been estimated to reduce about 37 tonnes of diesel particles over the next 10 years, leading to an estimated public health benefit of $8.1 million. Cleaner procurement and best worksite practices will also result in significant diesel emissions reductions and public health benefits.

Victoria

Report to the NEPC on the implementation of the National Environment Protection (Diesel Vehicle Emissions) Measure for Victoria by the Hon. Ryan Smith, Minister for Environment and Climate Change (until 29 November 2014) and the Hon. Lisa Neville MP, Minister for Environment, Climate Change and Water, for the reporting year ended 30 June 2015

PART 1—IMPLEMENTATION OF THE NEPM AND ANY SIGNIFICANT ISSUES

The administration and implementation of the NEPM in Victoria changed during 2013/2014 with the update of the Environment Protection (Vehicle Emissions) Regulations 2013 which replaced the 2003 Regulations. The Regulations no longer deal with heavy vehicles over 4.5 tonnes due to the introduction of the Heavy Vehicle National Law that was agreed by COAG in 2009. The facility at VIPAC Engineers & Scientists Ltd (Vipac) continues to be used however the volume of vehicles being reported has significantly dropped with the exclusion of vehicles over 4.5 tonnes.

PART 2—ASSESSMENT OF NEPM EFFECTIVENESS

While there are some limitations on the ability to quantify the overall effectiveness of the NEPM-based initiatives implemented to date, it has provided significant value in a number of areas.

The numbers of vehicles reported in EPA’s smoky-vehicle program continue to provide some insight into the high level of community awareness and concern into diesel vehicle exhaust emissions. The continued decline in the number of vehicles reported since the program began in 2005/06 could indicate that there are fewer smoky vehicles being spotted on Victorian roads. Prior to the reporting of heavy vehicles to the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator, there was a significant decline in the proportion of diesel-engine vehicles greater than 1.5 GVM tonnes being reported. This could indicate that there are fewer smoky diesel vehicles in this category.

Smoky vehicles program

EPA Victoria has operated a public smoky vehicle reporting program for a number of years. This program allows members of the public to identify smoky vehicles (diesel, petrol or LPG) using the “10-second” smoke rule, and report them to EPA. EPA also operates a separate official smoky vehicle enforcement program where EPA or Victoria Police officers can report vehicles identified as emitting greater than 10 seconds of continuous smoke. As a result of these reports, the owners of the offending vehicles are informed in writing of the report and are requested to have the problem fixed. They are also informed about the penalties that may apply if they are identified by officers from EPA, VicRoads or the Police. In 2014/2015, the program resulted in 1,046 smoky vehicle letters being issued for public reports and 13 cautionary letters being issued for official reports.

Infringement notices may be issued to repeat offenders with no instances recorded in 2014/15.

The following table indicates the number of smoky vehicles being reported in the public reporting program and the number of cautionary letters issued under the official program over the past nine years. Generally, there appears to be a downward trend in the number of vehicles being reported over recent years in both programs. The significant drop in reports between 2013–15 may also be affected by systems improvements being made to the program that will become evident over the next couple of financial years.

Table 1: Number of smoky vehicles being reported in the public reporting program and the number of cautionary letters issued under the official smoky vehicle program over the last 10 years.

Year	2005/06	2006/07	2007/08	2008/09	2009/10	2010/11	2011/12	2012/13	2013/14	2014/2015
Number of public reports	10,315	7,068	6443	5884	6177	5766	4895	3910	1296	1046
Number cautionary letters	1,538	849	946	708	445	630	495	554	107	13

Note: These numbers include all vehicles in the official program, not just diesel-engine vehicles.