Caribbean countries develop regional roadmap for cleaner, more efficient fuels and vehicles

UN Environment together with the University of Technology Jamaica (UTECH Ja.) and the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation (MEGJC) of Jamaica hosted back-to-back workshops in Kingston, Jamaica on 4-6 December 2018 focused on the region’s transition to sustainable mobility. The dedicated one-day national workshop on cleaner transport in Jamaica was followed by a two-day “Caribbean Cleaner and More Efficient Fuels and Vehicles Conference.”

Both events focused on the complementary efforts of the Global Fuel Economy Initiative (GFEI) and the Partnership for Clean Fuels and Vehicles (PCFV) in the region and globally.  The PCFV and the GFEI combined aim to improve air quality, to increase road safety and to catalyze large reductions of greenhouse gas emissions and oil use by improving fuel quality globally, by supporting the adoption of vehicle emission standards and by promoting the adoption of automotive fuel economy policies and electric mobility. Both initiatives support governments to develop policies that encourage cleaner fuels and more energy efficient vehicles. This includes technical expertise and policy development for low sulphur fuel standards, vehicle emission standards and auto fuel economy measures, including incentives for electric vehicles.

The objective of both events was to assess the current status of fuels and vehicles in Jamaica, and the Caribbean as a whole - including progress made to date on fuel quality and vehicle emission standards as well as development in auto fuel economy measures. Discussions included the challenges to cleaner fuels and vehicles and comprised the main implementing partners for cleaner fuels and vehicles - governments, policymakers, NGOs, industry and consumer groups. The discussions resulted in a clearer vision of the way forward at the national and sub-regional levels (including strategies and timelines) for the development of the Caribbean auto fleet according to the best available standards and technologies.

The regional discussions included delegates from government agencies responsible for transport, environment, energy and finance from Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Bermuda, Belize, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, St Vincent and the Grenadines, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia,  and Trinidad and Tobago, as well as regional bodies such as the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and SIDS Dock, the oil and vehicle industries, civil society, academia and international experts from Environment and Climate Change Canada and Centro Mario Molina Chile.

Jamaica initiated its national cleaner and more efficient fuels and vehicles project in 2015. The Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation partnered with the Tax Administration of Jamaica (TAJ) to develop a database of the island’s light duty motor vehicle fleet. Analysis of auto registration data showed a fuel economy improvement of 15% and a corresponding improvement in particulate matter emissions of over 16% from 2005-2017. Ms. Gillian Guthrie, Senior Director of the Environment and Risk Management Division of MEGJC stated that “…the GFEI had established a national auto fuel economy database with in-country capacity building support for analysis and reporting of pertinent data,” adding that a national website was being developed to facilitate awareness and engagement on related policy proposals. 

The GFEI continues to support the development of auto fuel economy baselines in Belize and the Dominican Republic. Both countries presented their initial findings at the regional event.

Ms. Ariadne Baskin, UN Environment, emphasized the importance of a systems approach to reducing emissions from vehicles. This means combining cleaner fuels with the best available vehicle emission standards and technology in order to maximize both CO₂ and non-CO₂ emission reductions. The PCFV reports that in some developing and transitional markets the average sulphur level in diesel can be as high as 10,000 parts per million (ppm), while levels in EU countries are at 10 ppm or below. Within the Caribbean levels now sits at between 1,000 to 5,000 ppm sulphur in diesel. Barbados and Bermuda are notable exceptions with ultra-low diesel sulphur of 15 ppm. Jamaica ‘s sulphur levels have remained at 5,000 ppm since 2014; however, some townships are importing diesel with 15 ppm. No Caribbean country has adopted vehicle emission standards and only two – Dominica and Jamaica - have national air quality standards.

Mr. Jeffery Guthrie of Environment and Climate Change Canada shared Canada’s experience improving air quality management.  He highlighted the i) importance of consulting with industry in order to design a successful regulation; ii) recognition that the more complex the regulation, the tougher it was to enforce, ii) need for extensive training of enforcement officers and regulators to ensure compliance; and that iv) designing the regulation was the ‘tip of the iceberg’ – implementation and administration were resource-intensive and required long-term commitment.

Barbados, Dominican Republic, Jamaica and Trinidad & Tobago shared experiences on moving towards cleaner fuels for vehicle fleets. Barbados was able to introduce ultra-low sulphur diesel relatively quickly. The main reasons for this rapid transition include the central role of the government as fuel importer and price-setter, excellent collaboration with associations of motor vehicle dealerships and owners, and expertise and capacity to implement the decision to adopt ultra-low sulphur fuels.

Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados and St. Lucia presented national efforts to shift to electric mobility. Fleet electrification is of interest in markets reliant on fuel and vehicle imports.

The workshops concluded with a set of recommendations to shift the Caribbean towards cleaner and more efficient fuels and vehicles.