Mobile Sources/Clean Air Conference Highlights Urban Programs and Emissions Concerns Sept. 16-19

Top U.S. Environmental Protection Agency officials, university researchers and auto-industry representatives will discuss methods and programs for emissions control and more at the 13th Annual Mobile Sources/Clean Air Conference in Steamboat Springs, Colo., Sept. 16-19.

Over 300 air-quality experts, researchers, government analysts and environmentalists will attend the conference at the Steamboat Springs Convention Center. The three-day conference is sponsored by the National Center for Vehicle Emissions Control and Safety, part of the College of Applied Human Sciences at Colorado State University.

The event is regarded as the premier conference in the nation which addresses air pollution. Featured sessions include panel presentations, round-table discussions, case studies and thought-provoking debates. In the past, the conference has attracted participants and speakers from the 50 states and from countries around the world, including Canada, Mexico, England, Germany, and others.

"This conference serves as a forum for national and international experts to share varying perspectives and discuss innovative solutions to common problems," said Birgit Wolff, director of the National Center for Vehicle Emissions Control and Safety.

Effective urban planning for cleaner cities and implementation of local and regional clean air programs will be discussed at length. Other highlighted sessions include the following:

* Gay MacGregor, on behalf of Margo Oge, head of the mobile sources program at the U.S. EPA, will discuss EPA perspectives on emissions control issues and EPA goals reaching into the year 2000 and beyond;

* Tom Auston of Sierra Research in California will evaluate the effectiveness of alternate inspection and maintenance programs;

* Bill Parton, professor at Colorado State, will discuss recent evidence of global warming and the effects of emissions from mobile sources;

* Sonia and Robert Vogl, professors at Northern Illinois University, will discuss the concept of ecowars, which includes the possibility of conflict over shortage of natural resources and clean environments;

* Lenora Bohren, professor at Colorado State, will discuss international issues involving emissions control; and

* Marty Keller of the Bureau of Automotive Repair will discuss the implementation of enhanced inspection and maintenance programs in California.

Presentations also are scheduled on new technology supporting clean air, including air legislation, developments in remote sensing research and models for inspection and maintenance.

The National Center for Vehicle Emissions Control and Safety opened in 1976 and is the nation’s only university-based center devoted exclusively to the study of light-duty vehicle emissions control.