Drivers to be fined 300,000 to 500,000 AMD for driving vehicles without or with malfunctioning catalytic converters

The Ministry of Environment is proposing to fine drivers for operating vehicles without catalytic converters or with malfunctioning emission control systems. The draft law has been put up for public discussion on the unified platform for legal acts projects, e-draft.

The proposal suggests that from January 1, 2020, operating vehicles that were imported and registered after this date without catalytic converters would incur a fine of 300 times the minimum wage (300,000 AMD), while public officials would face a fine of 500 times the minimum wage (500,000 AMD).

Repeated violations, within one year of the administrative penalty being imposed, would result in a fine of 600 times the minimum wage for civilians and 1,000 times for public officials.

The justification for the draft states that vehicle owners in Armenia are removing and selling their catalytic converters. This is primarily due to their high cost, as catalytic converters contain precious metals such as gold, platinum, palladium, and rhodium.

If a vehicle is operated without an emission control system or with a malfunctioning system, harmful substances are released into the atmosphere unfiltered, which poses significant risks, especially if it becomes widespread, as is currently the case in Armenia.

The amount of the fine is based on the market prices of removed catalytic converters. Studies show their average price reaches up to 300,000 AMD. There are also catalytic converters of higher value due to the large quantity of precious metals they contain. Therefore, the proposed penalty amount should not be less than the financial benefit that a citizen or public official would gain from removing and selling the catalytic converter.

The adoption of this bill would establish a corresponding mechanism for accountability, significantly reduce the cases of removing emission control systems and operating vehicles in malfunctioning conditions, and substantially decrease the volume of harmful substance emissions into the atmosphere, as well as their detrimental impact on the environment and human life and health.

Notably, only 39 percent of readers expressed support for the draft on e-draft, while 61 percent opposed it.