Alberta strives to manage air emissions to achieve air quality standards and objectives. Alberta’s Renewed Clean Air Strategy (2012) recognizes the need for management actions on non-point sources of air emissions, such as transportation. The transportation sector is one of the largest sources of nitrogen oxide emissions in the province. In addition to emitting nitrogen oxides, vehicle emissions also contain other air contaminants that can be associated with health impacts, such as particulate matter and volatile organic compounds.

In September 2024, the CASA board approved the final report and recommendations from the Roadside Optical Vehicle Emissions Reporter (ROVER) III project. The ROVER III project involved the collection of emissions data from 49,747 light-duty vehicles and 6,339 heavy-duty vehicles in Alberta. The data showed that up to 30% of the heavy-duty diesel-fueled vehicles and 10% of the light-duty gasoline-fueled vehicles measured had emissions that were at least 10 times higher than emissions benchmarks. Emissions that are much higher than expected indicate the vehicle’s emission control system is malfunctioning or has been tampered with. As the ROVER III project did not include vehicle inspections, the project team identified the magnitude and sources of vehicle emission control system tampering and the reliability of emission control technology in Alberta’s climate as data gaps. This project was started to address those gaps.

This project’s goal is to complete a comprehensive study that:

  • Identifies the magnitude and sources of vehicle emission control system tampering, including information gathered about manufacturers, sellers, and installers of defeat devices
  • Includes an assessment of the economic impact of vehicle emission control system tampering
  • Improves understanding of the reliability of factory-installed emission control devices

The project’s outcomes are expected to support air quality management in Alberta by providing advice to help identify actions or programs to reduce emissions from the transportation sector that take the province’s environmental, economic, and social context into consideration.

The project is expected to be finished in early 2027.

For more information, see project charter here or contact Katie Duffett at kduffett@awc-casa.ca