This is some of the best news to be announced by Ecuador's government in years.
The low-grade diesel fuel that has constituted the biggest and baddest pollution menace in the cities of La República has been undergoing a major upgrade.
Ecuador's hydrocarbons chief, Carlos Pérez, has announced that PetroEcuador's largest refinery will shut down temporarily later this month as new technology is installed that will bring diesel pollutants down about 84 percent from where they were two years ago.
Apparently, there has already been a major improvement cutting diesel-pollution levels to below half what they were in 2016. The pollution particulates count for diesel fuel has dropped from 350 to 120 in the past two years .. and is expected to be at 50 to 60 after the technology upgrades at the Esmeraldas refinery taking place between this month and May (2018).
This signals a major boost in the quality of life for folks living in Quito, Cuenca and Guayaquil -- especially those who travel along or live along the extensive networks of bus routes in those cities .. and wherever diesel-consuming trucks frequently travel.
Read the full story is at www.cuencahighlife.com ....
-- cccmedia
Breathe Easier: Ecuador Cutting Bus & Truck Fuel Pollution By 84 % !
This is excellent news for someone like me who goes on daily walks in Quito as well as in Cuenca when visiting===Love to see little or no diesel smoke left behind by the lovely Blue bus---it just might encourage more of us to get more active===
perfect news.. esp for quito, sometimes its impossible just to walk outside cause of disel buses, need to wear a mask(((
Yes, I've noticed a big improvement since I first came here to visit 4 years ago. Now that I live here I'm especially appreciative of the cleaner air. There still are some real polluters on the road though, especially some school buses and Ecovia buses.
Looking at pollution data from a few areas around the city, Centro, Belisario, Cotocolloa, and Carapungo in North Quito the air quality has indeed improved significantly.
It's quite astonishing, actually.
So can anyone give an update on this? Has the air improved? I'd love to hear from anyone who lives in the affected areas, especially Cuenca.
The only update I have is for Guayaquil. One bus line, 89, will be an all electric fleet by the end of the month. Cuenca and Quito will be adding electric buses to their fleets too in the next 18 months.
How much quantifiable pollution reduction is still unknown. I read once that the oldest 10% of vehicles are responsible for 90% of pollution.
Yes, I read about that, and actually 40 of the buses have already arrived in Ecuador where apparently they will be assembled locally. These BYD electric buses will also have wifi on board. Being electric and having free wifi is yet another impressive feat for Ecuador.
More good news for residents in Ecuador and the world as a whole. Ecuador will reduce harmful gases by 20.9% from now until 2025. The reduction will be in the energy, industrial, waste (assuming collection and disposal) and agriculture sectors.
Good stuff, I continue to like the direction this country is going towards in combating pollution.
Source
So here's the situation with buses that are diesel and gas powered. They will live out their lifespan and then be replaced by electric buses. That's basically the plan, and most of the current buses are already 15 years old with 20 years maximum lifespan. So, by 2025 we should be done with them.
Oh how I wish it could be sooner, I just came back from jog and the pollution from the buses is negating some of my hard work. There's actually a study that pointed this out or pollution negates the benefits of cardio exercise.
To circumvent it one has to jog after 9:30 when buses are less, and better after 10:00 pm. But Quito takes on a different appearance after that hour.
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