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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: [email protected]
East Coast Diesel of Jonestown, Pa. settles alleged violations
involving aftermarket devices for diesel trucks
PHILADELPHIA (June 22, 2021) – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced today that East Coast Diesel, a vehicle parts distributor in Jonestown, Pennsylvania, will pay a $20,000 penalty for allegedly selling aftermarket devices that were designed to defeat the emissions control systems of heavy-duty diesel engines.
The company’s actions allegedly violated the Clean Air Act’s prohibition on the sale of so-called “defeat devices,” which are designed to “bypass, defeat or render inoperative” a motor vehicle engine’s air pollution control equipment or systems. The facility is located at 529 Shirksville Road in Jonestown, and the company also operates a website for sales of aftermarket diesel truck performance upgrade products.
Illegally modified vehicles and engines contribute substantial excess pollution that harms public health and impedes efforts by EPA, tribes, states and local agencies to attain air quality standards.
Clean Air Act penalties take into account various factors such as the seriousness and duration of the violations, size of the business, the penalty’s impact on the business, compliance history, good faith efforts, and economic benefit of past non-compliance.
As part of the settlement, the company has certified it is now in compliance with applicable requirements.
This enforcement action is part of EPA’s National Compliance Initiative for Stopping Aftermarket Defeat Devices for Vehicles and Engines.
Today’s vehicles emit far less pollution than vehicles of the past. This is made possible by careful engine calibrations, and the use of filters and catalysts in the exhaust system. Aftermarket defeat devices undo this progress and pollute the air we breathe. EPA testing has shown that a truck’s emissions increase drastically (tens or hundreds of times, depending on the pollutant) when its emissions controls are removed.
For more information on this initiative, visit: https://www.epa.gov/enforcement/national-compliance-initiative-stopping-aftermarket-defeat-devices-vehicles-and-engines .
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