Diesel trucking companies plead guilty to conspiring to violate Clean Air Act
DENVER, Colo. (KRDO) -- The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado announced that two diesel trucking companies pled guilty to conspiring with a Colorado-based diesel shop to alter heavy-duty trucks and semi-trucks in violation of the Clean Air Act.
According to plea agreements, Iowa-based Pro Diesel, Inc. and Missouri-based Endrizzi Diesel, LLC paid a Colorado-based shop - identified only as "E.D." - more than $76,000 to disable on-board diagnostic systems on 34 Class 8 trucks. The plea agreement also stated that between January 2017 and December 2020, Endrizzi Diesel, LLC paid "E.D." more than $149,000 to disable diagnostic systems on approximately 60 class 8 trucks.
On-board diagnostics systems - or OBDs - are monitoring devices that are required to be installed on vehicles to monitor emissions control systems. These OBDs are required under the Clean Air Act. Tampering with an OBD - which is frequently referred to as “tuning” - is sometimes done to allow vehicles to continue to seemingly operate normally while the emissions control system is disabled.
The U.S. Attorney's Office says that people affiliated with "E.D." would run software programs remotely to reprogram or “tune” on-board diagnostic systems. These programs would disable the monitoring functions of the OBDs so they would no longer detect malfunctions in emissions control systems.
The U.S. Attorney's Office says this practice reduces the costs associated with maintaining or repairing emissions control systems on heavy-duty diesel trucks. However, "tuning" vehicles may contribute to the release of more pollutants - such as nitrogen oxides and carbon monoxide - into the air, which could negatively impact the environment and public health.
Pro Diesel, Inc. will be sentenced on June 14. Endrizzi Diesel, LLC will be sentenced on June 29.
