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The number of regions beyond California that are adopting aggressive emissions legislation is growing rapidly. We talked with Glen Chrusciel, manager of repower and retrofit at John Deere Power Systems, to see how the movement is affecting rental businesses.

Q: What are the requirements for emissions in nonattainment areas and how do they differ from other parts of the country?

A: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), governing agency of the Clean Air Act, monitors key pollutants like ozone and particulate emissions throughout the country per the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). Areas identified as exceeding minimum air quality standards for any one or a number of air pollutants are classified as nonattainment areas by the EPA. Locations designated as nonattainment areas must submit air quality plans, known as State Implementation Plans (SIPs), demonstrating how state or local legislatures will take action to attain the standards. Retrofit programs requiring emission reduction on legacy off-road diesel equipment has been one of many approaches these regulators have taken to achieve attainment.

Local regulation of nonattainment areas varies greatly from one region to another because not all nonattainment areas are dealing with the same pollutants and pollutant levels. With local regulations constantly changing, there's no way to guarantee what the situation in specific nonattainment areas will be for equipment owners. For instance, with the recent 24-hour fine particles (PM2.5) and 8-hour ozone revisions made by the EPA to the National Ambient Air Quality Standards, it is anticipated that the number of nonattainment areas will be increasing in 2010. Equipment owners should always check with their local regulatory authorities to determine how specific local regulations affect them.

Q: What are the requirements of equipment owners within nonattainment areas? Do older pieces of equipment always need to have engines replaced? Are there any loopholes?