Utah County drivers won't get the break from a special type of government-required gasoline this winter that they've received the past two years.
In fact, gas stations will sell fuel with more oxygen infused into it than ever before. The Utah Air Quality Board decided to increase the oxygenate in gasoline from 2.7 percent to 3.1 percent in accordance with a state plan to maintain federal air-quality standards. Utah County gas stations are required to sell oxyfuel from Nov. 1 to Feb. 28."It's something that's being done in other communities across the country," said Barbara Cole, state Division of Air Quality mobile sources manager.
Oxygenated gasoline burns more completely than regular gasoline, reducing the amount carbon monoxide put into the air. Officials believe increasing the oxygen content will further reduce CO emissions, although that is the subject of some controversy. Some car owners complain that the gas causes engine trouble.
The Air Quality Board made the change for two reasons.
First, the state's air quality plan for Utah Valley required the oxygenate level to be increased if the county did not have an "enhanced" automobile emissions testing program by Jan. 1, 1995.
County officials have resisted changing the way gas stations test vehicles because they believe the current method to be adequately effective.
The other reason has to do with the amount of miles people drive. Motorists in the growing valley drove about 12 percent more miles than local transportation officials predicted, Cole said.
The Clean Air Act requires the county to take measures to curb the amount of pollution those cars put out.
"It's not surprising that it was over," Cole said.
The state allowed the county to suspend the last six weeks of the November-to-February oxyfuel season during the past two years for pollution studies. Researchers wanted to know if there were noticeable difference in air qualitybefore, during and after the season. Some scientists also suggested that oxyfuels elevated levels of fine-particulate pollution, which can be more hazardous to human health. The studies were inconclusive.
That combined with a lack of money doomed a third study. "Resources are very scarce," Cole said.
Air quality officials also don't want the county to exceed federal carbon-monoxide standards as it did one day earlier this year when the oxygenated fuel requirement was suspended for the study. The county is allowed one day a year over the limit. A second day when standards were exceeded this year could bring even tighter regulations to Utah County.
"There's a lot of risk there," Cole said.
Exceeding the carbon monoxide limit generally occurs in the winter when stagnant air tends to trap vehicle tailpipe emissions. Weather conditions also play a key role in whether emissions limits are met or health standards are violated.