Pull the lead out
Page 39
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Petrol-driven vehicles in Europe discharge some 25,000 tons of lead into the atmosphere during the course of a year.
This, environmentalists, please note, does not present us with an alarming situation, according to a report by the Secretariat of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (ECE).
However, it is desirable gradually to reduce this amount. What we must all note is that the long-term effects are not thoroughly understood.
What we do understand in road transport haulage is that the promotion of the diesel engine would provide an answer to the problem of lead. As diesels are more efficient than those using petrol, they do not need fuel with a high octane number, and their use would considerably reduce the emissions of toxic gases.
Petrol without lead, or much less, seems the more obvious way of reducing lead emissions in exhaust gases. But can we afford it? Most European refineries would have to undergo extensive, costly and time-consuming modifications to deliver leadless fuel.
An interesting point here worth consideration by our industry, and our Government, is that the report notes that lower taxes on diesel fuel are already an incentive to its use in many ECE countries. While there is little difference between the price of diesel and 'regular'' petrol in Britain, West Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, the gap widens elsewhere.
The countries where diesel is less than half the price of regular petrol are Norway, Denmark, Italy, Greece and Portugal.