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Clear ideas for clearer air
Page 9
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Brian Weatherley challenges us all, government and operators alike, to come up with practical, efficient and, above all, green ways of protecting the world we live in.
What sort of world do we want our children to inherit? I've been thinking about this after enjoying the kind of sunny weather that's increasingly common in the middle of winter. If that's global warming it's very pleasant—but how long have we got before very pleasant becomes distinctly unpleasant?
This year sees the arrival of the long-awaited (and much debated) Euro-4 emission regs. No doubt many CM readers are already asking themselves: "Do I really want to get involved with this?" Your answer will depend on your perspective. From a purely economic standpoint, it's probably no. New technology doesn't come cheap and despite your best green intentions the temptation to buy tried and tested Euro-3 technology will be too strong to ignore.
However, seen through the end of a green telescope the answer must be yes. Whatever we can do to reduce the impact of vehicle emissions we should do — unfortunately, the kind of green driving the average British truck operator is the folding kind. Sad but true.
Not that long ago the government created the now-defunct Reduced Pollution Certificate scheme whereby operators buying a Euro-2-engined truck were rewarded by a reduction in VED. Right idea, wrong mechanism. What it should have offered was a rolling system of cash grants that gradually reduces as the deadline for any new exhaust regs approach.
Too bad the Treasury isn't in the business of thinking outside the box. But then its job is to screw money out of road users, not offer a sprat to catch a mackerel. Given that the truck engine manufacturers have already made fantastic strides in cutting emissions is it unfair to ask for operators to have a better reason to embrace cleaner diesel technology than a legislative big stick?
We all want to leave our children a better world the only question is, what's the best way to do it?
"Operators should have a better reason to embrace green technology than a legislative big stick"