Detroit Diesel to Pay $28.5 Million in Clean Air Act Settlement
Image: U.S. Department of Justice
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Image: U.S. Department of Justice
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Detroit Diesel Corp. will pay $28.5 million, in a combination of fines and funding for pollution-reduction projects, to settle alleged violations of the Clean Air Act that the Department of Justice said entailed selling heavy-duty diesel engines that were not certified by the Environmental Protection Agency and did not meet applicable emission standards.
Per the settlement agreement announced by DOJ, Detroit Diesel will pay a $14 million civil penalty and spend $14.5 million on projects to reduce nitrogen oxide and other pollutants, including replacing “high-polluting” diesel school buses and locomotive engines with models that meet current emissions standards.
The government’s complaint, filed on Oct. 7 in tandem with the settlement, alleges that Detroit Diesel violated the Clean Air Act by “introducing into commerce 7,786 heavy-duty diesel engines for use in trucks and buses in model year 2010 without a valid EPA-issued certificate of conformity demonstrating conformance with Clean Air Act standards to control nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions,” said DOJ. The complaint also alleges that the engines did not conform to emission standards applicable to model year 2010 engines.
“This case demonstrates the critical importance of EPA’s vehicle and engine certification program to achieving the goals of the Clean Air Act,” said Assistant Attorney General John C. Cruden for the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “By not certifying the engines in accordance with the rules, Detroit Diesel Corp. increased pollution and undercut competitors. We will uphold the integrity of that program by holding accountable those that skirt the rules.”
Per a statement received from David Giroux, director of corporate communications for Daimler Trucks North America, Detroit Diesel’s parent firm, in the second half of 2009 the engine maker received “an unexpected increase” in orders for MY2009 engines.
“To complete production of those engines in 2009, …Read the rest of this story
