EPA FINALIZES LEADED AVIATION FUEL ENDANGERMENT FINDING
November 27, 2023
The Environment Protection Agency (EPA) released its final “endangerment finding” on leaded aviation fuel, which will trigger legal requirements for EPA and the FAA to issue additional regulations to address lead emissions — though no new requirements are being imposed in the immediate future. Most aircraft, including jets, burn unleaded fuels. But some smaller aircraft with piston engines — including planes that typically carry fewer than 10 passengers and certain helicopters — burn a type of fuel known as “avgas” that still contains lead. There is no known safe level for lead, which harms cognitive development in children and is linked to cardiovascular, kidney and reproductive issues in adults. The finding means that the EPA must now issue emissions standards for aircraft that consume avgas. The FAA is also required to develop fuel standards to reduce or eliminate lead emissions. The FAA last year launched a program to promote lead-free alternative fuels and has already approved an unleaded alternative that can be used by most piston-engine aircraft, but it is not commercially available. It has also approved a lower octane fuel that is available at 35 airports. FAA plans to initiate a rulemaking aimed at controlling or eliminating aviation lead emissions from piston engine aircraft.
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