Air Quality Problems and Solutions Examined at National Conference Presented by Colorado State University

Note to Editors: Media representatives are invited to attend the annual Mobile Sources/Clean Air Conference Sept. 11-14 at the Estes Park Conference Center in Estes Park, Colo. To arrange interviews or attendance, contact June Greist at (970) 491-6432.

Hundreds of leading environmentalists, policy makers, corporate representatives and academics from the United States, Mexico, Australia and other countries will gather to discuss the most recent air quality issues at the 17th annual Mobile Source/Clean Air Conference. The national conference, held from Sept. 11-14 at Estes Park Conference Center, is presented by the National Center for Vehicle Emissions Control and Safety housed at Colorado State University.

The conference attracts key activists and decision-makers and is designed to build partnerships among groups with a common commitment to finding solutions to air quality problems caused by vehicles. Highlights include a session titled "U.S. Response to Kyoto," a critical scientific look at the Bush administration’s stance on the Kyoto agreement presented by William Parton of the Natural Resource Ecology Lab at Colorado State. Another session will be presented by John Holms of the National Research Council. Holms recently directed a National Science Academy report that evaluated vehicle emission inspection and maintenance programs.

"This conference is unique in that it brings together groups that often have differing views on emissions issues," said Birgit Wolff, director of the National Center for Vehicle Emissions Control and Safety. "Government officials, automotive technicians, environmentalists, and top representatives in the car industry can debate solutions and learn from each other in this open forum."

The conference includes discussions of on-board diagnostics, the unveiling of innovative new clean air technologies, an EPA "town meeting" and discussion of remote sensing. The conference also will include a discussion of the health hazards automotive technicians face.

The conference is sponsored by the National Center for Vehicle Emissions Control and Safety, a research training center at Colorado State University. The center is in the Department of Manufacturing Technology and Construction Management and part of the College of Applied Human Sciences.

The center has a long history of hosting national and international conferences. The center conducts training seminars throughout the United States and Canada using its original technical- and human-factors research to create educational materials.

The National Center for Emissions Control and Safety was established in 1976 by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and is the nation’s only university-based center devoted exclusively to the study of light-duty vehicle emissions control.

For more information, call (970) 491-7240 or visit www.ncvecs.colostate.edu