Kelly Presnell / arizona daily star

Other articles by Erica Meltzer:

County staff in $100K club up 87% since 2006Supervisors fret about Kino money, to file brief in Phoenix garage casePima weighs new, less-complicated system of building feesPima plans to buy 4 parcels for open spacePima County set to spend $12.8 million on land purchases Major data firm drops plan for S. Ariz. site amid power concerns Firm's input on Kino Hospital shushed Off-road track at center of Court of Appeals challenge Gate near river is cut, restored County gets role in Rosemont mine study

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In an effort to reduce air pollution, Pima County may require gas stations to install equipment that traps gasoline vapors.

But gas-station owners say the equipment, which can cost anywhere from $8,000 to $80,000, will not make much difference in air pollution and could drive up the cost of gas.

The volatile organic compounds in gasoline vapors interact with sunlight to produce ground-level ozone, a key ingredient in smog and a cause of respiratory problems.

Since 1995, Pima County's ozone levels have been at roughly 90 percent of federal standards. But the Environmental Protection Agency is expected to lower the standards next year, knocking the county out of compliance.

That has some Pima County officials considering the technology, known as Stage II Vapor Recovery, as a way to lower Pima County's ozone levels.

"I think it's an important environmental issue for our community, for our children and for everyone," said Supervisor Richard Elias, chairman of the Pima County Board of Supervisors and a proponent of requiring vapor recovery. "I think it's just one of those expenses that business will have to take on."

But gasoline-station owners say that expense will result in higher gasoline prices.

"Consumers are going to pay either way," said Andrea Martincic, executive director of the Arizona Petroleum Marketers Association.

The technology has been in use throughout the country for decades, mostly in urban areas that violated federal air quality standards. A Stage II system includes a special nozzle with a rubber boot that forms an airtight seal against the opening to the vehicle's tank. The incoming fuel pushes the vapors out of the tank, and the nozzle captures the vapors and returns them to the underground storage tank.

Tanker trucks collect the stored vapors and return them to the bulk-dispensing terminals through a system known as Stage I Vapor Recovery.

Stage I has been required in Pima County since 1994. In Arizona, Stage II is required only in the Phoenix metro area.

Some gas stations in Pima County already have the necessary plumbing underground to do Stage II Vapor Recovery. For them, installing the necessary nozzles and other above-ground equipment would cost about $8,000, Martincic said. But installing the underground plumbing could cost as much as $80,000 and would disrupt business for several days.

Martincic said Pima County could achieve similar air quality gains by switching to blended fuels year-round. She also questioned why Pima County would ask gas-station owners to take on such a large expense when new vehicles have on-board vapor recovery systems.

"It seems like a knee-jerk reaction," she said. "Let's do Stage II because we've heard it's good. And if they're trying to be proactive, what are they trying to accomplish?"

The supervisors had planned to discuss the matter today but are expected to postpone the item until Dec. 18. If the county adopted the requirement, it would apply only in the unincorporated area.

Pima County Department of Environmental Quality Director Ursula Kramer said she believes the only gas station voluntarily doing Stage II in the Tucson area is Costco.

"We want to be good neighbors," said Tim Hurlocker, director of gasoline operations for Costco. "We also know we would do a lot of volume and that would mean a lot of pollution."

Some states, particularly in the East, plan to phase out Stage II as more and more cars have on-board vapor recovery. Florida won't require Stage II after 2010.

But Arizona, with its low humidity and mild winters, has slower vehicle turnover than other parts of the country.

Pima Association of Governments estimates that 50 percent of the cars on the road in Pima County have on-board recovery systems, but it could be as soon as 2013 or as long as 2020 before enough cars have the on-board systems to accomplish the same air quality goals as requiring Stage II.

Like Arizona, California has slow vehicle turnover, and the state also regulates benzene, one of the substances in gasoline vapors, as a public-health concern. With Stage II, gas station attendants and people with older cars aren't exposed to benzene while they pump gas.

"It's to our benefit to maintain Stage II until 2020," said Cindy Castronovo, an air-pollution specialist with the California Air Resources Board. "And although a lot of our systems are in place to reduce (volatile organic compounds), we also have a state control in place for benzene."

Pima County resident Terry Nordbrock became concerned about benzene exposure when her son was diagnosed with leukemia. Though he has recovered, the experience led her to pursue a master's in public health with a focus on childhood-cancer prevention. She wants the county to require Stage II rather than wait for more cars to have on-board systems.

"That argument makes me mad because that means only rich people are protected," she said. "If you can afford a new car, then you're protected. If you can't, then you're not."