PRESS RELEASE
19th December 2001


Motorcycle Emissions
European Parliament adopts Lange Report: the way to Conciliation...


11th & 12th December 2001, EP Plenary Session, Strasbourg
The debate and second reading vote within the European Parliament (EP)
on the proposal for further reductions of motorcycle emissions resulted
in the endorsement of the Rapporteur's position. This means mandatory
emission limits for 2006 on the basis of the Adapted European Car Test
Cycle, provisions on durability and in-use compliance of fitted devices
to meet original emission performances over time.

FEMA was present in Strasbourg. During the debate held the evening
before the vote, the Rapporteur Bernd Lange underlined the main
objective of his proposed amendments: making motorcycles as clean as
cars by 2006.
The European Commission expressed its general support for Lange's
Report
but still disagrees on setting mandatory 2006 limit values before a
test
cycle specific to motorcycles is finalised. Part of the results from
the
technical development of this World Motorcycle Test Cycle (WMTC)
wouldbe
validated the following week, said Commissioner Erkii Liikanen.

FEMA thinks that established mandatory 2006 limits must not be
distorted
by any subsequent changes to the test cycles. These limits should be
consistent with the objective of the proposal, therefore subject to
correlation factors in order to avoid hidden reductions going beyond
the
original targets for motorcycle emissions.

The provisions on durability and in-use compliance contained in the
proposal, seeking to control the conformity of original emission output
of vehicles under normal conditions of use, are still very vague and
require closer investigation. The European Commission will set up a
working group in order to define the best practice to implement those
measures. FEMA will be part of this group and make sure, if these
provisions were to be implemented, that motorcyclists would not bear
their costs.

The divergent positions of the European Parliament and the Council of
Ministers will inevitably result in the proposal going through the
conciliation procedure. Next Spring will then be a crucial time for
this
issue. FEMA is constantly undertaking actions to make sure that
motorcyclists get a fair treatment.

ENDS

Issued by Christina Gesios

--
FEMA
Federation of European
Motorcyclists' Associations
Rue des Champs 62,
1040 Brussels, Belgium

Tel: +32 (0)2 736 9047
Fax: +32 (0)2 736 9401

http://fema.ridersrights.org