The potential impact of gasoline additives on air quality in developing countries

The economic and environmental situations in many developing countries are troubling. For example, in Latin America and in the Caribbean, from an approximate population of 500 million, only 125 million have access to good drinking water, and about 200 million do not have adequate sanitary facilities. In many large populated centers, as well as in some small communities, the air quality is very poor and this becomes an additional factor to be added to the overall effects of poverty. In many cases, air pollution is not a high priority for governments that are intent on expanding economic development. A major issue, which is of great concern in the creation of air pollution, is the use of additives in automotive gasoline and/or to produce reformulated and oxygenated gasoline. In many Latin American and Asiatic countries, the use of reformulated gasoline (RFG) is being touted as a cure for the prevailing urban smog problems. In the United States, the Environmental Protection Agency, has reported that RFG represents “a significant” step toward clean air, with the introduction of RFG in 1995, combined with other industrial and transportation controls aimed at air pollution reduction. This information pertains to the USA and not to all countries in the world. All of these control measures together are responsible for the long-term downward trend in US air pollution. However, this “magic formula”, must be implemented only under certain conditions, many of which do not exist in Latin America, in order to produce the expected results. This paper investigates the transportation conditions that exist in most Latin American and Asiatic countries, using Mexico City as an example. It points out that the use of RFG can actually cause a degradation of air quality due to the age distribution of the automotive fleet, along with other technical issues associated with the type of cars currently in use. The reasons behind this degradation along with possible alternative transportation control measures are discussed with the goal of reducing the overall air pollution burden in these developing areas.