3 What are the new NRSIEE emission standards? Australian emission standards for NRSIEE will be based on those applied in the US and administered by the US EPA. The US EPA has both exhaust and evaporative emission standards. However, evaporative emission standards will not be adopted in Australia at this stage (see Section 3.2). Table 1 gives an outline of the exhaust emission standards applied by the US EPA. The detailed Australian emission standards (emission limits) for NRSIEE and their requirements will be set out in a Rule., Information on the commencement dates for the exhaust emission standards for NRSIEE is provided in Section 6 of this paper. Table 1: Outline of NRSIEE exhaust emission standards applied by the US EPA Engine size/power STANDARD g/kW-hr Outdoor equipment 19 kW and below - examples Cubic centimetres (cc) HC + NOx CO15 Push lawnmowers, small generators/pumps < 225 cc 10 610 Ride-on lawnmowers, tillers, generators ≥ 225 cc 8 610 Handheld: pruners, blowers, line trimmers < 50 cc 50 805 Handheld: chainsaws, wood splitters, concrete saws ≥ 50 cc 72 603 Marine equipment Kilowatts (kW) HC + NOx CO Outboards, Personal Water Craft (PWC commonly called jet skis) and jet boats < 4 m long) - small ≤ 4.3 kW 30 500-478 - medium > 4.3 kW ≤ 40 kW 30-17.516 478-30016 - > 40 kW 17.5-1616 300
In addition, while the EU standards offer equivalent exhaust emission controls to the US EPA standards, they do not set limits on evaporative emissions. Therefore, inclusion of evaporative standards would mean EU certified equipment would still need Australian certification – an additional regulatory and administrative burden. While it is recognised that some manufacturers already comply with the full US EPA emission standards requirements, a key aim of the Rules is to provide the opportunity for industry as a whole to become compliant. Providing more than one compliance route which delivers the vast majority of the air quality benefit would appear appropriate for a market which is currently unregulated. On balance, it is considered beneficial to accept NRSIEE certified to either US EPA, CARB, Canadian or EU emission standards as it will enhance competition and Australian consumers will have access to a wider range of NRSIEE with minimal compromise on the expected air quality benefits. The introduction of evaporative emission standards would also place a significant regulatory burden on local manufacturers of fuel system components, such as tanks, and assemblers of equipment who fit fuel systems to engines, including most boat dealers. It is also worth noting that NRSIEE which demonstrates compliance with the Rules via a certificate of conformity from the US EPA will have complied with the evaporative emissions requirements of the US EPA standard. This position is proposed to be reviewed from 2019. Should a decision then be made to work towards the introduction of evaporative emission standards, it is envisaged that a timeframe of around two years would be required before the evaporative standards could commence. This means that industry will not be required to start working towards evaporative emission standards for at least two years, if at all. 4 Which products will the standards apply to? The Rules will set out which products the emission standards for NRSIEE will apply to. They will only apply to new NRSIEE that has been imported, manufactured or supplied in Australia. They will not apply to NRSIEE that Australians already own. The categories of NRSIEE products to be covered by the Rules are: spark ignition engines rated 19 kilowatts and below used in household and commercial operations, including: lawn mowers, ride-on mowers, mulchers, brush/line cutters, generators (includes onboard marine), pumps, chainsaws, and other small handheld or pushed/pulled engines