Judge approves deal between engine makers and EPA

WASHINGTON, D.C. (July 12, 1999) — A federal judge has approved the $1.3 billion US emissions settlement reached last fall between the Environmental Protection Agency and six engine makers, opening the door to legal battles over the agreement.

Judge Henry H. Kennedy, Jr., reviewed the consent decrees worked out by the EPA and the U.S. Justice Department with Caterpillar Inc., Cummins Engine Co., Detroit Diesel Corp., Mack Trucks, Navistar International, and Volvo Trucks North America. He declared the agreements “fair, reasonable, and consistent with public policy.”

The dispute arose when the U.S. government accused engine makers of using “defeat devices” to get around federal emissions standards.

Electronic engines did indeed meet the EPA’s emissions test, which emulated in-city, stop-and-go driving. But the engines performed in a different fuel-saving mode in on-highway conditions, leading to what the government said was as much as three times the amount of pollution.

The engine makers said EPA knew all along that the engines performed differently on the highway, but chose to settle rather than go through an expensive, protracted legal battle in the courts.

The engine makers must pay a total of $83.4 million in civil fines, which vary depending on the manufacturer. They also agreed to spend another $109 million in environmental projects. They will spend an estimated $800 million to get engines ready for lower NOx levels in 2002, as mandated by the agreement – two years earlier than previous standards.

With the consent decree now approved, lawsuits are expected to be forthcoming from environmentalists, truck engine owners, and individual states.