2023-09-07 20:34:05
The Italian government announced Thursday the postponement, from 2023 to 2024, of the ban on old diesel vehicles in the very polluted north of the country. This following protests from motorists.
The Piedmont region was to ban on weekdays, from September 15, vehicles with Euro 5 pollution standards in the Turin agglomeration and more than 70 other cities in the north of the country.
European emission standards, or Euro standards, aim to reduce pollution caused by traffic. Set by the European authorities, they make it possible to classify vehicles according to their level of pollutant emissions.
These standards extend to a growing number of European cities and imply vehicle traffic restrictions according to their Euro standard.
“Avoiding a social and economic crisis”
But Italy’s Environment and Energy Minister Gilberto Pichetto Fratin revealed on Thursday that this date would be pushed back to October 1, 2024 and the number of areas affected would be reduced.
“The government has intervened (…) to avoid a social and economic crisis for families and businesses,” he said, while insisting that the European Union’s recommendations for reducing of pollution would be respected.
The President of the Piedmont Region, Alberto Cirio, accusing the EU of having “forced” him into this unpopular measure, welcomed the government’s announcement.
He highlighted the removal of 700 of the most polluting buses, insisting that the region remained “fully focused on protecting the environment and health”.
Defense of the automotive industry
Since coming to power in October 2022, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has pleaded for the defense of the automotive industry to curb the movement to limit polluting emissions.
In May, the Italian government pledged once morest the future Euro 7 standard, along with seven other EU member states, including France and Poland.
The Euro 7 standard, applicable from 2025, would reduce nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions from passenger cars and light commercial vehicles by 35% compared to the previous Euro 6 standard, according to the European Commission.
Manufacturers, already shaken by the electric revolution, want a minimum standard for these thermal engines that will disappear in 2035.
ats, afp
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