Report Urges Europe to Get Tougher on Diesel Pollution

European transport ministers meeting on Tuesday in Luxembourg are being urged to step up investigations into 30 diesel models with suspiciously high emission levels.

The vehicles previously were flagged by authorities in France, Germany and the U.K. following Volkswagen's admission that it rigged 8.5 million diesels in Europe to evade tests. But lobbying group Transport and Environment’s Dirty 30 report complains that none of those countries has launched more thorough testing or imposed any sanctions.

The analysis says countries typically approve high-polluting diesel models made locally. The group claims all 30 models—23 of them tested by France, Germany or the U.K.—emit too much nitrogen oxides and “deploy strategies that turn down or switch off pollution controls” under driving conditions beyond those allowed by EU tests.

T&E claims countries are protecting their own auto industries at the expense of public health. “Either we break the cozy relationship between national authorities and their car brands with effective European supervision and independent testing,” declares Greg Archer, director of clean vehicles at T&E, “or the cheating will continue.”