Interview: Expert calls for tougher vehicle emissions control in Mexico City

The urban area of Mexico City will see frequent spells of heavy pollution during hotter months if authorities do not take actions to curb emissions from millions of cars, an environmental expert told Xinhua on Friday.

"At a time of low rainfall, a lot of ozone can be generate, the emission which most contributes to pollution," said Leon Pablo Hurtado, technical director of the Institute for Assistance in Ecological Investigations (Inaine).

The Valley of Mexico, made up by Mexico City and 18 surrounding municipalities, has seen three pollution alerts since March 14, a frequency unseen since 2002.

The latest alert was lifted on May 5, after three days in which factories were ordered to reduce emissions by 40 percent and a program to keep 10 percent of cars off the road every day, based on their license plates, was doubled.

The government must immediately tighten control on all the estimated 5.5 million cars in the city and remove from the roads those that fail to past emissions test, he said.

Meanwhile, polluting cargo vehicles and public buses must also be audited and banned from hitting roads, if necessary, since they are currently not sanctioned under emissions laws, he added.

"This is a massive problem. Authorities simply must stop certain vehicles from being on the roads or diminish industrial activities," said Hurtado.

Inaine, a non-profit organization focusing on environmental problems, has found that most cargo or public transport vehicles in Mexico City are powered by diesel, which emits high amounts of ozone.

During the most recent alert, ozone levels reached 192 points at the Metropolitan Index for Air Quality (Imeca), a level that could leave people with breathing difficulties, said Hurtado.

"These alerts will continue to happen as long as there is no wind and rain. The Valley of Mexico will continue to suffer pollution in waves," Hurtado said.

He added that the heat wave currently wrapping Mexico City is a result of climate change and is set to continue for several more weeks.

"We cannot control climate change or atmospheric conditions. We cannot generate wind or block out the sun, but we can avoid polluting the atmosphere with toxic emissions," the expert said. Endite