This Just In...
Kevin Fischer is an award-winning veteran broadcaster who has been seen and heard on Milwaukee TV and radio stations for nearly three decades.
Kevin, who is a legislative aide to state Sen. Mary Lazich (R-New Berlin), can be seen offering his views on the news on the public affairs program, “INTERchange,” on Milwaukee Public Television Channel 10. He lives with his wife, Jennifer, in Franklin.
On this beautiful Earth Day...
By Kevin Fischer
Sunday, Apr 22 2007, 09:01 PM
Today’s phenomenal weather and the fact that this is Earth Day got me thinking about air quality. The fact is, our air quality has never been better.
That’s why it’s time to eliminate the emissions testing requirement for southeast Wisconsin. The tests are a costly, unnecessary bureaucratic waste, not to mention a huge inconvenience.
Data from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) indicates air quality is improving in most areas of the United States. There is no direct evidence that the obligatory emissions testing has led to reductions in air pollution from automobiles. In fact, there are areas of the country with no emissions testing programs that have demonstrated as much air quality improvement as areas that do require testing.
Our air quality is the best it’s ever been, not because of mandatory emissions, but thanks to newer, cleaner running automobiles that have replaced older cars. The new cars are cleaner and stay cleaner much longer than their predecessors. So as the older cars go away, our air quality gets better and better and better.
There’s no need to maintain an emissions system that isn’t directly related to progress in air quality, could be too strict, and fails so many vehicles. A failed test means a tremendous hassle: finding an auto repair shop that can make the required fixes, scheduling an appointment, going without a car for a half-day or more, spending several hundred dollars for potentially unnecessary repairs, and then going back a second time with no guarantee of passing.
Remember, the emissions tests were instituted at a time when there was data, virtually ignored, that southeast Wisconsin’s dirty air was caused, in large part, from polluted air coming up Lake Michigan from Illinois and Indiana. Now our air quality exceeds the standards set by the federal government.
Even though the DNR and the EPA most assuredly won’t lift southeast Wisconsin from this bureaucratic nightmare, the emissions testing requirement needs to go. At the very least, changes should be made to exempt newer cars from being tested at all or not as often.
