The Iowa Department of Transportation, along with other state agency officials, is seeking public feedback on a plan to improve air quality in the state.
The Beneficiary Mitigation Plan is the next phase of a 2016 settlement with Volkswagen concerning the automaker cheating on air emission tests.
Iowa will receive $21 million over 10 years to use on projected aimed at reducing nitrogen oxides. Volkswagen violated the Clean Air Act by selling approximately 580,000 motor vehicles between model years 2009 and 2016 containing 2.0 or 3.0 turbocharged direct injection liter diesel engines equipped with devices to falsely pass emission tests. The vehicles emitted nitrogen oxides in excess of Environmental Protection Agency standards.
The plan was developed after a February to April 2017 public survey. Public comments will close May 25. The state will review the comments and develop the finalized plan.
During the 2017 survey, the public approved all 10 of Iowa’s mitigation plans. The public also supported funding zero-emissions infrastructure for light-duty electric vehicles.
The state plans to allocate 45 percent of its settlement funds to class 4 through 8 buses, 15 percent to zero-emission vehicle infrastructure, 15 percent to the Diesel Emission Reduction Act grant, and 10 percent to nonroad transport and equipment.