California Air Resources Board

Sacramento – The California Air Resources Board (ARB) announced today that Cummins Engine Company, manufacturer of heavy duty diesel engines, has paid $1,092,500 for allegedly violating its 1998 settlement agreement with ARB to perform clean air projects and certify its engines to reduce smog-forming emissions such as NOx (oxides of nitrogen). 

"We are very pleased that Cummins is taking steps to reduce excess emissions from the heavy duty engines in question, and that they are cooperating by instituting recalls and retiring emissions credits," said ARB Executive Officer Catherine Witherspoon.

Among the violations of the 1998 settlement agreement ARB alleged, Cummins obtained state certification for 11,600 heavy duty engines equipped with emission control systems that did not meet emissions requirements, omitted 26,347 engines from eligibility for the Low NOx Rebuild (Chip Reflash) program, and failed to complete work on and to submit reports for agreed upon emission reduction projects in a timely manner. ARB investigated these violations jointly with U.S. EPA, which entered parallel agreements to settle these violations.  

In addition to paying over $ 1 million in penalties, as part of the latest settlement agreements Cummins is required to recall the 11,600 engines nationwide that did not meet state emissions requirements. In addition, Cummins will retire emissions credits from further use. (Emissions credits are a market mechanism, created to help industries meet various emissions standards; they are bought, sold and traded by refineries, power plants, and other emissions sources.) Cummins is reimbursing 979 NOx tons to the U.S. and to California through ARB to compensate for the excess tons generated by the prohibited emission control devices, and 1042 tons of NOx for its non-compliance with the earlier settlement agreement.

All monies are being paid to the California Air Pollution Control Fund (APCF). The APCF was established to mitigate various sources of pollution through education and the advancement and use of cleaner technology. This fund uses compliance settlement fees to support various pollution-related research projects and related programs. The Legislature controls the use of the APCF through the annual Budget Act.