Faulty buses undermine Guangzhou's move to LPG
Liquefied petroleum gas for Guangzhou's buses and taxis is not the answer to pollution, a study by five Guangzhou People's Congress delegates has found, because 'invisible pollutants' it produces are more harmful that the black smoke from diesel-powered vehicles.
A research group, comprising congress members Zeng Dexiong, Luo Ding, Tian Zijun, Wu Weihong and Huang Yanjing, was set up in August to study public transport.
The announcement was seen as a bold gesture, as the city had spent 240 million yuan (HK$273 million) since 2003 to convert 7,000 public buses, more than 80 per cent of the total. All 16,000 of the city's taxis had been converted to run on LPG.
According to the report, obtained by the South China Morning Post, LPG generated heavier pollution than diesel, and could be a direct contributor to Guangzhou's smoggy skies. It said LPG energy was not as clean as expected because it generated more invisible pollutants unless suitable devices were installed in the cars and functioned well.
One of the congress members who prepared the report, but did not wish to be named, said: 'After adopting LPG, the black smoke from Guangzhou's buses might seem to have disappeared, but the invisible pollutants are even more than before. These invisible pollutants might be directly contributing to Guangzhou's grey skies.'
He said that processors installed to treat emissions from LPG-using public buses often stopped working after three to five months, and the broken processors were seldom replaced because of the cost.
He said Guangzhou's transport operators were not bothering to maintain and replace the matching devices.
'With LPG, it must come with matching conditions such as the right kind of engines, but so far this is lacking in Guangzhou,' he said.
The report claimed that 'the actual emissions of public buses fuelled by LPG and its environmental impact had not been taken seriously'.
An academic study last year by the South China University of Technology, the China Automotive Technology and Research Centre and other public transport stakeholders showed that the emissions from public buses using LPG were low in organic particulate matter. But they were found to produce more nitric oxide, sulphur dioxide and other gases than public buses running on diesel, and their hydrocarbon emissions were 127 times those of diesel vehicles. The report said LPG vehicles cost 9.2 per cent more per 100 kilometres to operate.
It cited Shenzhen's attempt to introduce LPG vehicles in 2003, which was abandoned in 2007.
Another criticism in the report was that there were only 30 LPG fuelling stations, mostly in rural areas, for Guangdong's public buses.
The congress member said: 'We are just hoping to present a facet of the reality to raise more government attention. The problem should be addressed after thorough public consultation. But the officials have been insisting on their stance that LPG is a clean energy source.'
A spokesman for the Guangzhou Municipal Transport Commission had said it would continue to convert the remaining 1,000 diesel-using public buses to LPG, the People's Daily reported yesterday.
