Fuel emission reduction policy
THE Government of Jamaica has reiterated its commitment to reducing air pollution caused by harmful vehicle emissions and inefficient motor vehicles, through the implementation of the Jamaica National Energy Policy (NEP).
Julian Robinson, State minister in the Ministry of Science, Technology, Energy and Mining said the NEP will, among other things, “discourage the importation of inefficient motor vehicles by linking the tax regime to mileage per gallon and the engine capacity”.
Robinson was addressing the opening ceremony of the Cleaner Fuels and More Efficient Vehicles Conference for the Caribbean at the Knutsford Court Hotel in Kingston on Monday.
The State Minister said the implementation of the NEP has already borne some positive results, such as “the introduction and mandating of 10 per cent ethanol blended automotive petrol in 2011.”
He noted that while the current allowable sulphur level in diesel fuels is 5,000 parts per million (ppm), the actual sulphur grades of diesel found in Jamaica is between 11 – 50 ppm. In addition, he said: “Ultra Low Sulphur Diesel was also introduced in June 2013 and it is also now legal to blend biodiesel up to five per cent by volume.”
He further explained: “Plans are in place to upgrade the 35,000 barrels per day hydroskimming refinery to more modern and efficient processing and waste treatment units.”
Efforts will also be put in place to ensure that more efficient motor vehicles are imported into the country, with a cap of between five, six and 10 years for cars, pickups and trucks and trailers, respectively.
Joseph Williams, programme manager in the Energy Division of the Caricom Secretariat welcomed the workshop, acknowledging that in some small island states, transport energy use is more than 50 per cent of the total energy used.
“In the context of imported fuel, if we are really serious about transformation of the energy sector, this should be the target, as in some cases, electricity only accounts for 25-30 per cent of energy use,” he said.
Meanwhile, Elisa Dumitrescu, project manager with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), noted that the issues of particulate matter and black carbon emissions are growing internationally, as nations seek to increase the use of cleaner fuels by their national vehicle fleets.
“A systems approach is best to realise success in our efforts so cleaner fuels must be combined with appropriate vehicles, to ensure reduced emissions,” she stated.
As an example she explained that the use of diesel particle filters can reduce fine particles by over 85 per cent, however the technology is only feasible with low sulphur fuels.