But they are also crippling the local car industry and place the government in a difficult position.
People were recently outraged after 17 local brands of soy sauce were found to contain a carcinogenic chemical. They should, however, realize that fuels with high pollutant levels are worse than soy sauce since, no matter who uses the fuels, everyone breathes the same air.
A report by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment estimates that every year motor vehicles generate 5 million tons of carbon dioxide (CO2), 61,000 tons of carbon monoxide (CO), 35,000 tons of nitrogen dioxide (NO2), 12,000 tons of sulfur dioxide (SO2), and more than 22,000 tons of CmHn (petroleum and oil vapors). The air in the country’s big cities contains several times higher level of pollutants than recommended.
Meanwhile, the number of vehicles increases by 20 percent every year.
“Vietnam is now near the bottom of the list of Asian countries for air quality,” Nathan Sage, Country Program Manager for the US-Asia Environmental Partnership in Vietnam, was quoted by newswire VnExpress as saying in 2005.
But such statistics and warnings never seem to worry people. Few Vietnamese have voiced concern about the air that they breathe. That could be the reason why government agencies are not really interested in addressing the problem. As a result, while food manufacturers have to list the ingredients and materials in a food package, no one lists the contents in fuel, except for the sulfur content in diesel.
Before the government announced the roadmap for adopting Euro II emission standards, few Vietnamese knew there were no emission standards for vehicles [in the country] and fuels used in Vietnam were among the world’s most toxic.
How could low-quality Chinese motorbikes flood Vietnam? Because Vietnam has no standards and so vehicles of any quality could be imported. Why can’t Vietnamese-made cars be exported? Because Vietnam has no standards and so nobody dares to import its cars.
An experiment carried out in Europe showed that a 50cc motorbike not matching Euro standards emits the same fumes as 65 Euro-standard 1,800cc cars.
Most of the world is embracing stricter standards to reduce emissions. Experts estimate that raising the standards by one level will reduce emissions by half.
China, a country more or less like Vietnam, has adopted Euro II and Euro III since 2003 and will adopt Euro IV next year. Vietnam, on the other hand, will adopt Euro II next year. So, we will take a step forward in reducing emissions but, indeed, still lag far behind other countries.
The adoption of obsolete emission standards in Vietnam will lead to at least two serious problems.
First is the negative impact on the living and investment environments. If we could effectively adopt Euro II, the air could be more breathable. But as mentioned above, in relative comparison with other countries, the air would be still far too polluted. One of the reasons why 80 percent of tourists never return to Vietnam is the environment. For affluent tourists or tourists traveling with children, Vietnam is hardly a choice. Experts from developed countries are also reluctant to work in countries with unclean environment. This has greatly affected investments in Vietnam, especially in high-tech industries.
Secondly, the Vietnamese car industry, which has never been able to export its products, will continue to lag behind. Technically, local car makers, especially foreign invested, are capable of adopting Euro III and Euro IV, but they won’t exert themselves unless the government forces them to. Worse, cars below Euro III and Euro IV norms will continue to be imported. In the long term, this means a headache for the government if it wants to further upgrade the emission standards.
And, we are only presuming that Euro II will be strictly adopted. But, as explained before, the plan seems unfeasible now with the continued sales of low quality fuels.
Cars running on low quality fuels will quickly deteriorate and break down, experts warn. High sulfur fuels could shorten the lifespan of cars’ fuel filters by 60-80 percent and cause fuel injectors to clog. Importantly, there is no effective exhaust filter system for engines or motors that use 0.25 percent diesel. This will cost manufacturers a pile for maintenance and, more importantly, their prestige.
Meanwhile, the government will face a dilemma. Theoretically, fuels that fail to conform to the new standards are illegal after Jan 1, 2007, and are thus banned. But the government cannot do that or else all social and economic activities in the country will come to a halt.
Written by Hoang Hai Van |
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