Testing autos

Whether Maine reopens its auto-emissions centers March 1 as planned or is granted another delay, the state does not escape federal laws that require it to have a system to reduce emissions by July 26. Anyone with a better idea than the emissions testing would be a welcome adviser to the state right now.

The state contracted last summer with CarTest to perform emissions testing in seven (now three) counties in southern and coastal Maine. Those tests properly were suspended when it became apparent that the process had too many bugs in the system and too few answers about autos that failed. The tests were to be restarted March 1, but Gov. Angus King is considering a way to extend the program suspension while warning that auto-testing eventually may be part of Maine’s pollution-control mix. More than 100,000 Mainers, mostly the elderly and children, suffer health problems brought on by the current levels of air pollution.

There is good reason for including the car testing as a means to reduce the amount of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and nitrous oxides (NOx) in the air. Industry has largely borne the burden of cleaner air in Maine, although mobile sources such as cars contribute significantly to the overall pollution level. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that removing pollutants from industrial smokestacks costs between $2,000 and $10,000 a ton. The cost for removing pollutants through the car-testing program is about $500 a ton.

Mainers aren’t alone in protesting the emissions testing. Drivers in Texas, Pennsylvania, Virginia and New York have called for an end to testing programs. Part of the reason for the reaction to what has been in several states an efficient, cost-effective way to reduce pollution may be a backlash against federal regulations generally.

Maine has both a federal mandate and a $42 million, seven-year contract with CarTest to negotiate as it plans what to do with its emissions program. What should drive the decision Augusta, of course, is the health of the state’s residents. But if that argument fails, the economics of the testing should prevail.