&EPA
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Air and Radiation
EPA420-F-96-001
May 1996
Office of Mobile Sources
Environmental
Fact Sheet
Statement of Principles for
Small Handheld Gasoline Engines
EPA and state and industry representatives have agreed to the structure for a
Phase 2 program for small handheld gasoline engines. This agreement
includes standards that represent a 30 percent reduction in hydrocarbon
(HC) + oxides of nitrogen (NOx) emissions below Phase 1 levels.
Current Standards
In June 1995, the Environmental Protec-tion
Agency (EPA) finalized the first national
regulations affecting small gasoline-powered
engines used primarily in lawn and garden
equipment. These regulations, commonly
known as "Phase \," take effect for new engines
beginning in 1997. These new stan-dards are
expected to result in a 32 percent reduction in
HC emissions.
Regulatory Negotiations
In September 1993, a Negotiated Rule-
making Advisory Committee was formed to
support EPA in developing a practical approach
to a comprehensive regulatory program for
Phase 2 control of air emissions from these
engines. This committee met until February
1996, but did not reach consensus on an
Agreement in Principle or draft regulatory
language. The negotiations process generated
much useful information, however, and
provided EPA with input from all key players
which will be helpful in developing the Phase 2
regulations.
Statement of Principles
Subsequent to the regulatory negotiation
process, some of the parties reached an agree-
ment on many of the issues for the handheld
side of the industry.
Signatories:
APEMA
EPA
NAEDA
PPEMA
STAPPA/ALAPCO
Wisconsin DNR
That agreement is embodied in a Statement of
Principles (SOP) for new spark-ignited engines
below 19 kilowatts (25 horsepower) for use in
handheld applications. Examples of equipment
in this category include: trimmers, edgers,
brush cutters, leaf blowers, leaf vacuums, chain
saws, augers, and tillers.
In addition to EPA, the signatories of the
SOP are: the Auger and Power Equipment
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Manufacturers Association (APEMA); the North
American Equipment Dealers Asso-ciation
(NAEDA); the Portable Power Equip-ment
Manufacturers Association (PPEMA); the State
and Territorial Air Pollution Pro-gram
Administrators/Association of Local Air
Pollution Control Officials (STAPPA/
ALAPCO); and the Wisconsin Department of
Natural Resources.
Examples of affected equipment:
augers • brush cutters •
chain saws • edgers • leaf blowers •
leaf vacuums • tillers • trimmers
Elements of SOP
This SOP, which will form the basis of the
Phase 2 proposed rule for these engines,
includes the following elements:
• Emission standards for HC + NOx, and
carbon monoxide (CO) to be met over the
lifetime of the engine (given in grams per
kilowatt-hour):
Engine Class
III (<20 cubic cm)
IV (020 and < 50
cubic cm)
V (050 cubic cm)
HC+NOx
210
172
116
CO
805
805
603
These standards represent a 30 percent reduc-
tion in HC+NOx emissions below Phase 1
levels. This results in a total reduction of 49
percent below uncontrolled levels.
• Phased-in effective dates on a percentage of
production basis from model year 2002 through
model year 2005.
• A particulate matter and toxics test program
to evaluate the levels of these pollutants.
• A voluntary program allowing manufac-
turers to display a special label identifying
handheld engines that have HC+NOx certifi-
cation levels substantially below the Phase 2
standards.
• Compliance provisions to ensure engines
continue meeting the standards for the life of
the engine, including: a certification pro-gram;
a production line testing program; and an in-use
testing program.
These standards represent a
30 percent reduction in HC+NOx
emissions below Phase 1 levels.
• A technology review to assess the appropri-
ateness of Phase 3 emission standards to be
effective as early as 2007.
For More Information
For more information on this program,
please contact the Office of Mobile Sources by
writing to:
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
National Vehicle and
Fuel Emissions Laboratory
2565 Plymouth Road
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48105
or call 313-668-4333.
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