[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 186 (Tuesday, September 27, 2005)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 56425-56426]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-19214]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
49 CFR Part 571
Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards
AGENCY: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA),
Department of Transportation (DOT).
ACTION: Denial of petition for rulemaking.
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SUMMARY: This document denies a petition for rulemaking submitted by
Mr. Albert Donnay requesting NHTSA to require manufacturers to offer
carbon monoxide detectors in all new gasoline powered vehicles and to
make available retrofit devices for older vehicles. These detectors
would automatically shut off the engine when carbon monoxide levels
inside the vehicle exceed a concentration of 200 parts per million,
when the vehicle is stationary. The data show that a mandate for in-
vehicle carbon monoxide detectors would fail to address more than 70%
of vehicle-related carbon monoxide deaths, because the victims are
outside the vehicle. NHTSA will use its resources to consider safety
areas where more effective solutions are available.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. John Lee, Office of Crash
Avoidance Standards, NVS-123, National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration, 400 7th Street, SW., Washington, DC 20590. Telephone:
(202) 366-2720. Fax: (202) 366-7002.
For legal issues: Mr. George Feygin, Office of Chief Counsel, NCC-
112, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 400 7th Street,
SW., Washington, DC 20590. Telephone: (202) 366-2992. Fax: (202) 366-
3820.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On January 12, 2001, Mr. Albert Donnay
submitted a petition for rulemaking requesting that NHTSA: (1) Issue
annual press releases on the dangers of vehicle carbon monoxide \1\
(CO) poisoning and recommend the use of CO detectors, (2) report CO
vehicle-related fatalities (suicide, unintentional, in moving and
stationary vehicles), (3) fund research on CO poisoning in vehicles,
(4) require information on the dangers of carbon monoxide poisoning be
included in owners' manuals and (5) require manufacturers to install CO
detectors in all new gasoline powered vehicles and offer equivalent
devices for older vehicles. These detectors would have the capability
to cut-off the engine when carbon monoxide levels inside the vehicle
exceed a concentration of 200 parts per million (ppm) for a stationary
vehicle. In moving vehicles the occupants would be directed to open a
window immediately when an audio and visual warning is given off by the
detector when CO level reached 10 ppm. In support of his petition, Mr.
Donnay cited two NHTSA Research Notes, ``Fatalities Associated With
Carbon Monoxide Poisoning From Motor Vehicles in 1993'' December
1996,\2\ and ``Fatalities Associated With Carbon Monoxide Poisoning
From Motor Vehicles, 1995-1997'' April 2000.\3\
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\1\ Carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless gas that is
contained in the exhaust of gasoline powered motor vehicles. When
inhaled in sufficient quantities, carbon monoxide can cause illness
or death.
\2\ The December 1996 Research Note reported data collected by
the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) on the estimated
number of people killed as a result of CO poisoning by exhaust gases
from motor vehicles in 1993. The study examined factors such as
stationary and moving vehicles, unintentional and suicidal CO
deaths, season of the year, and vehicle location. NCHS reported that
in 1993, 1,978 deaths occurred while the vehicle was in the
stationary position. Eighty-four percent of the deaths were the
result of suicide, 12 percent were accidental and 3 percent were of
unknown intent. The annual average of accidental fatalities in
stationary vehicles for 1993 was 245.
\3\ The April 2000 Research Note reported an annual average of
222 accidental fatalities associated with CO poisoning for
stationary vehicles for a period between 1995 and 1997. The data
from the April 2000 Research Note indicated a decline in accidental
fatalities in stationary vehicles from 234 CO fatalities in 1995 to
208 CO fatalities in 1997.
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The agency is denying the petition for the reasons explained below.
We began our consideration of the petition by reviewing the data. In
May 2004, the agency published a more comprehensive study of injuries
and fatalities resulting from, among other things, CO poisoning.\4\
This study was based on a review of 1998 death certificates from 35
states. The results of the study found that CO deaths most often do not
involve moving vehicles, but rather vehicles left running in enclosed
spaces. There were 140 deaths associated with vehicle generated carbon
monoxide poisoning found in the death certificates reviewed. Of the 140
deaths, 41 deaths (29%) occurred while the individual was sitting in
the vehicle. The other 71% of deaths involved people outside the
vehicle. One hundred twenty-nine of the fatalities (92%) occurred in a
garage, home, or residence. Most of the scenarios involved someone
working on a vehicle with the vehicle running in a closed garage, or a
death in a residence when someone left a vehicle running in a garage
attached to the home. A review of scientific literature cited in the
report found, ``Unintentional poisonings from vehicle-generated carbon
monoxide diminished toward the close of the 20th century, with a
particular decline in these types of incidents noted in the years
following 1975 when catalytic converters were introduced into
automobiles. The steady decline from 4.0 to 0.9 deaths per 1 million
person-years since 1975 represents a 76.3 percent decrease. The total
number of 1998 unintentional motor vehicle related deaths from carbon
monoxide has been reported at 238.'' Thus, there is a decline in
vehicle-related CO deaths absent any regulation. In addition, the data
about vehicle-related CO deaths indicate a home CO detector would be
substantially more effective than a vehicle CO detector at preventing
these deaths because 92% of the fatalities occurred at the home.
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\4\ ``Non-Traffic Death and Injury Data Collection Study,'' see
http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/problems/studies/NonTraffic-NonCrash/Images/noncrash.pdf.
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Further, we note that NHTSA has previously denied a petition for
rulemaking that is substantially similar to Mr. Donnay's petition,\5\
because the costs far exceeded the expected benefits. Specifically, the
agency denied a petition for rulemaking submitted by Mr. Herb
Denenberg, which requested that: (1) The agency require carbon monoxide
detectors in all new motor vehicles; (2) the agency require
manufacturers to offer optional carbon monoxide detectors in all new
motor vehicles, (3) the agency require that the owners' manuals
indicate the
[[Page 56426]]
availability and value of installing a carbon monoxide detector; and
(4) the agency issue press releases and consumer advisories with
information regarding the availability and value of CO detectors. The
petitioner cited the results of the 1996 Research Note and stated,
``many if not most of these deaths could be prevented by carbon
monoxide detectors,'' but did not offer any data to support this
assertion. NHTSA denied the Denenberg petition because the costs would
have been unjustifiable \6\ in relation to the benefits. The
effectiveness of CO detectors lessens substantially over time and most
vehicle-related CO deaths involve older vehicles.
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\5\ See 62 FR 49190, September 19, 1997.
\6\ We estimated that the total cost of the requirement would
exceed $240 million. This estimate does not include the cost of
installation and maintenance.
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The agency is denying this petitioner's request for the same
reasons. In addition to our previously stated reasons for denying the
petition, the agency is also concerned that the automatic engine shut-
off device proposed by the petitioner could prove to be a hazard. For
example, in a tunnel with congested traffic, the concentration of CO
may cause the device to shut off the engine, resulting in further
traffic congestion or even possible crashes.
In accordance with 49 CFR part 552, this completes the agency's
technical review of the petition for rulemaking from Mr. Albert Donnay.
Based on this review, the agency has concluded its resources would be
more productively directed to other areas. Therefore, Mr. Donnay's
petition is denied.
Issued on: September 20, 2005.
Stephen R. Kratzke,
Associate Administrator for Rulemaking.
[FR Doc. 05-19214 Filed 9-26-05; 8:45 am]
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