Clunkers

Talk about bad science, Alexander Cockburn’s recent article on clunkers is a classic example, (“A Kind, Clean World for the Clunker,” Column Left, March 15).

He seems to think that emissions controls on automobiles are some sort of bureaucratic error that let big industry off the hook. Nothing could be further from the truth. Cars and trucks are the primary problem in the Los Angeles Basin. According to the California Air Resources Board, mobile sources emit 56% of all hydrocarbons, 71% of all oxides of nitrogen and 94% of all carbon monoxide; refineries and power plants total 1.9%, 8.7% and 0.5%, respectively.

In Unocal’s program, the average car scrapped had 99 times more hydrocarbon emissions per mile than a (then) new 1990 car, 50 times more carbon monoxide and 11 times more oxides of nitrogen. The worst car emitted enough unburned gasoline at the tailpipe to power a car getting 32 miles per gallon. The best car was 40 times cleaner--but it was still eight times dirtier per mile than a new car. The program was a quick, painless and cost-effective way to reduce air pollution.

His points about sulfuric acid are equally distorted. Nationally, gasoline contains over 0.030% sulfur; in California, the typical gasoline has 0.015% sulfur, which will be reduced to 0.004% in 1996. A typical Eastern coal used for power generation has 3% sulfur, or 200 times more than California gasoline!

Los Angeles, with the highest number of catalytic converter-equipped cars (Cockburn’s “sulfuric acid factories”) in the world, is in attainment with state and federal air-quality standards for sulfur compounds. Since 1975, the first year the converters were put on cars, emissions of sulfur dioxide from automobiles have dropped from 35 tons per day to 14. This is only about 11% of sulfur dioxide emissions from all sources.

And his contention “that auto thieves will now have an incentive to prey on poor people’s old Plymouths or Chevys” also ignores the facts. In Unocal’s program, sellers were required to produce identification showing that they were indeed the legal owners.

RICHARD J. STEGEMEIER, Chairman, President & CEO, Unocal, Los Angeles