Biting critiques by consumer advocates like Ralph Nader, anti-trust lawsuits by the federal government, Congressional investigations and a growing environmental movement all combined to convince GM that the time had come for change. Catalytic converters were not introduced to reduce lead, as is sometimes suggested. Even if there had been no public health issue with lead, the converters would still have needed unleaded gasoline. But new public health research did indicate serious problems and this was used as an added justification for eliminating leaded gasoline. In 1973, Ethyl Corp. sued the EPA and won a temporary victory when a federal court set aside the leaded gasoline phase-out regulations, saying EPA hadn't demonstrated that lead was a public health hazard.
Catalytic converters are now a standard part of a car's exhaust system.
The converter reduces the nitrogen oxides back to nitrogen and oxygen and oxidizes carbon monoxide and hydrocarbon emissions. The lead phase-out, as we will see in the next section, become a standard tactic in the fight to curb air pollution and improve public health worldwide. An EPA report from 1985 still exist on the web and relates that the catalytic converter was introduced to reduce lead. Kennesaw State University 1000 Chastain Rd.