By Sharon Atieno
The transport sector accounts for nearly a quarter of energy-related global greenhouse gas emissions with vehicle emissions being a major source of the fine particulate matter and nitrogen oxides that are major causes of urban air pollution. A new report shows that used vehicles exported from developed countries are of poor quality and significantly contribute to air pollution and hinder efforts to mitigate the effects of climate change.
The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) report shows that of the 14 million used light-duty vehicles – saloon cars, SUVs and minibuses – exported worldwide between 2015 and 2018, 80 per cent went to low- and middle-income countries, with more than half going to Africa.
The Used Vehicles and the Environment – A Global Overview of Used Light Duty Vehicles: Flow, Scale and Regulation, the first-ever report of its kind, found that African countries imported the largest number of used vehicles (40 per cent) in the period studied, followed by countries in Eastern Europe (24 per cent), Asia-Pacific (15 per cent), the Middle East (12 per cent) and Latin America (nine per cent).
The report finds that some two-thirds of the 146 countries analyzed have weak or very weak policies to regulate the import of used vehicles. In Africa, 35 countries have weak regulatory framework while only 10 have good to very good regulatory processes to attract quality vehicles.
Conversely, it shows that where countries have implemented measures to govern the import of used vehicles- particularly age and emission standards- these give them access to high-quality used vehicles, including hybrid and electric cars, at affordable prices for example in Ghana and Morocco.
Poor quality used vehicles also lead to more road accidents with the report noting that many of the countries with “very weak” or “weak” used vehicles regulations, including Malawi, Nigeria, Zimbabwe, and Burundi have very high road traffic death rates. Countries that have introduced used vehicles regulations also see safer fleets and fewer accidents.
Similarly, a recent review by Netherlands Human Environment and Transport Inspectorate show that 80% of vehicles from Netherlands to Africa do not match Euro 4 European Union vehicles emission standards with most being between 16 and 20 years old. Also, most of these vehicles did not have a valid roadworthiness certificate at the time of export.
“Cleaning up the global vehicle fleet is a priority to meet global and local air quality and climate targets,” said Inger Andersen, Executive Director of UNEP. “Over the years, developed countries have increasingly exported their used vehicles to developing countries; because this largely happens unregulated, this has become the export of polluting vehicles.”
She said that the lack of effective standards and regulation is resulting in the dumping of old, polluting and unsafe vehicles while urging developed and importing countries to stop exporting such vehicles and to introduce stronger quality standards respectively.
The Netherlands Minister for the Environment, Stientje Van Veldhoven said that the results of the review show that urgent action needs to be taken to improve the quality of used vehicles exported from Europe and the Netherlands cannot address this issue alone.
“Therefore, I will call for a coordinated European approach, and a close cooperation between European and African governments, to ensure that the EU only exports vehicles that are fit for purpose, and compliant with standards set by importing countries,” Van Veldhoven said.
UNEP, with the support of the UN Road Safety Trust Fund and others, is part of a new initiative supporting the introduction of minimum used vehicles standards. The initiative’s first focus will be countries on the African continent; a number of African countries have already put in place minimum quality standards – including Morocco, Algeria, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana and Mauritius – with many more showing interest in joining the initiative.
“The impact of old polluting vehicles is clear. Air quality data in Accra confirms that transport is the main source of air pollution in our cities. This is why Ghana is prioritizing cleaner fuels and vehicle standards, as well as electric bus opportunities. Ghana was the first country in the West Africa region to shift to low sulphur fuels and this month has imposed a 10-year age limit for used vehicle imports,” said Prof. Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng, Ghana’s Minister for Environment, Science, Technology & Innovation.
Last month, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) set cleaner fuels and vehicle standards from January 2021. ECOWAS members also encouraged the introduction of age limits for used vehicles.
The report concludes that more research is needed to detail further the impacts of the trade in used vehicles, including that of heavy duty used vehicles. It also calls for action to fill the current policy vacuum with the adoption of a set of harmonized minimum quality standards that will ensure used vehicles contribute to cleaner and safer fleets in recipient countries.
