Tighter exhaust emission standards for in-use petrol vehicles and motorcycles to take effect from 1 April 2018
Singapore, 8 March 2017 – As announced at the Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources (MEWR)’s Committee of Supply Debate, NEA will tighten exhaust emission standards for in-use petrol vehicles and motorcycles to achieve a cleaner vehicle fleet in Singapore. This move is part of the Government’s regular review of vehicle emissions policies to improve Singapore’s ambient air quality and safeguard public health.
2 Air pollution is a key threat to public health in many cities. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), air pollution is the biggest environmental health risk, particularly for heart diseases and stroke (refer to Annex A on the health impact of criteria air pollutants). We will need to reduce domestic emissions further to meet our 2020 air quality targets which are benchmarked against WHO standards (refer to Annex B for Singapore’s air quality targets for 2020).
Tighter Exhaust Emission Standards for In-Use Petrol Vehicles and Motorcycles
3 As part of our efforts to improve ambient air quality, we will tighten exhaust emission standards for in-use petrol vehicles[1] and motorcycles[2].
4 Currently, exhaust emission standards for in-use petrol vehicles and motorcycles specify limits for Carbon Monoxide (CO) emissions. From 1 April 2018, the CO limits will be lowered for newer petrol vehicles and motorcycles. In addition, Hydrocarbon (HC) limits will be introduced for all in-use petrol vehicles and most motorcycles (refer to Annex C for the tightened in-use emission standards). The revised standards are expected to result in reductions of up to 55 per cent and 51 per cent for CO and HC vehicular emissions respectively. HC and CO are precursors to ozone, and CO and ozone are known to cause nausea, impair vigilance and respiratory functions. A new high idle test and lambda[3] measurement will also be introduced for newer in-use petrol vehicles (excluding motorcycles) to detect defective components such as sensors and catalysts which could result in higher emissions.
5 With proper maintenance, in-use vehicles should be able to meet the revised exhaust emission standards. Motorists are reminded to properly service and maintain their vehicles so that they can operate more efficiently, lower operating costs, and decrease harmful emissions.
[1] Petrol vehicles refers to any on-road petrol driven vehicles (i.e. cars, commercial vehicles and buses), excluding motorcycles.
[2] Motorcycles include both 2-wheeled and 3-wheeled motorcycles.
[3] The new high idle test requires the engine speed to be increased to at least 2,000 revs/min during inspection and Lambda test is the measurement of the quantity of intake air divided by the theoretical air requirement of the engine. The high idle and lambda test only applies to newer vehicles (registered on or after 1 April 2014) which are equipped with electronic fuel injection, ignition system and three-way catalyst to detect defects such as defective sensors and degraded catalyst efficiency that would not otherwise show up in idle tests.
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ANNEX A
Health Impact of Criteria Pollutants
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Criteria
Pollutant
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General Health Effects
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PM2.5
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PM2.5can cause serious health effects at relatively low concentrations. Long term exposure to PM2.5can cause decreased lung function, development of chronic bronchitis, stroke and premature death while short term exposure can cause a range of effects, including decreased lung function, increased respiratory symptoms and heart attacks.
|
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PM10
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PM10can cause respiratory impairment and aggravate existing respiratory and cardiovascular disease. Individuals with heart or lung disease as well as the elderly and children are most sensitive to the effects of PM10.
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SO2
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SO2can cause respiratory impairment and aggravate existing respiratory and cardiovascular disease. Individuals with heart or lung disease as well as the elderly and children are most sensitive to the effects of SO2.
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NO2
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NO2increases the risk of respiratory infection and impairs lung functions in asthmatics.
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CO
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Carbon monoxide deprives body tissues of oxygen and causes nausea and impairs vigilance.
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Ozone
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Excessive ozone in the air can impair respiratory functions.
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ANNEX B
Singapore Ambient Air Quality Targets
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Pollutant
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Singapore’s Performance for 2016
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Singapore Targets by 2020
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Long Term Targets
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Sulphur Dioxide
(SO2)
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24-hour mean: 61µg/m3
(Highest 24-hour mean)
Annual mean: 13µg/m3
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24-hour mean: 50µg/m3
(WHO Interim Target)
Annual mean: 15µg/m3
(Sustainable Singapore Blueprint target)
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24-hour mean: 20 µg/m3
(WHO Final)
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|
Fine Particulate Matter
(PM2.5)
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Annual mean: 15µg/m3
24-hour mean: 40µg/m3
|
Annual mean: 12µg/m3
(Sustainable Singapore Blueprint target)
24-hour mean: 37.5µg/m3
(WHO Interim Target)
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Annual mean: 10µg/m3
24-hour mean: 25µg/m3
(WHO Final)
|
|
Particulate Matter
(PM10)
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Annual mean: 26µg/m3
24-hour mean: 61µg/m3
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Annual mean: 20µg/m3
24-hour mean: 50µg/m3
(WHO Final)
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Ozone
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8-hour mean: 115µg/m3(Highest 8-hour mean)
|
8-hour mean: 100µg/m3
(WHO Final)
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Nitrogen Dioxide
(NO2)
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Annual mean: 26µg/m3
1-hour mean: 123µg/m3
|
Annual mean: 40µg/m3
1-hour mean: 200µg/m3
(WHO Final)
|
|
Carbon Monoxide
(CO)
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8-hour mean: 2.2mg/m3
1-hour mean: 2.7mg/m3
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8-hour mean: 10mg/m3
1-hour mean: 30mg/m3
(WHO Final)
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ANNEX C
Tightened In-Use Standards
Table 1: In-use standards for petrol driven motor vehicle, other than a motor cycle
*red font denotes tightened limits
Table 2: In-use standards for motor cycle
*red font denotes tightened limits
