Question 17428 — security of property and people

Summary

Mr. Alexandre Dufosset draws the attention of the Minister of the Interior to the operational difficulties encountered by the departmental fire and rescue services due to the constraints linked to the AdBlue equipping certain intervention vehicles. Indeed, during long interventions, particularly in the context of fighting forest fires, certain vehicles may be forced to temporarily leave the fire front in order to refill AdBlue. AdBlue is a liquid used by diesel vehicles equipped with an SCR anti-pollution system. Composed of approximately 32.5% high purity urea and 67.5% demineralized water, it is injected into the exhaust to transform a large portion of the nitrogen oxides (NOx) into nitrogen and water vapor. It thus helps reduce vehicle pollution. However, fire and rescue vehicles cannot be assimilated to heavy goods vehicles for conventional road transport. They often travel short distances between their emergency center and the place of intervention, but then remain engaged for long hours, sometimes several days, in idling or stationary operating conditions. Their mission therefore imposes an appropriate technical regime, so that no equipment essential to the protection of populations, homes and forest areas be removed from an operation for a constraint linked to a depollution system. It is not a question of calling into question the objective of reducing polluting emissions, but of recalling that an environmental standard must never compromise a civil security mission. Common sense dictates that emergency vehicles can remain fully operational in all circumstances, particularly during forest fires where every minute and every available vehicle counts. Several European examples show that adaptation is possible. In Germany, certain intervention vehicles may benefit from engines specifically configured for authorities and emergency services, in order to avoid any reduction in power in the event of a difficulty linked to AdBlue. Still in Germany, Baden-Württemberg has already planned, on a transitional basis and in justified cases, possibilities of exemption from the application of the Euro VI standard for certain heavy intervention vehicles of the firefighters, civil protection, rescue and police. This example demonstrates that a controlled exemption adapted to the operational needs of emergency services can be put in place without calling into question the general objective of reducing emissions. Therefore, he asks him if he intends to carry out a national inventory of the difficulties linked to AdBlue on the vehicles of the departmental fire and rescue services and whether it plans to put in place an exceptional regime adapted to the operational needs of firefighters, in order to guarantee that these vehicles remain fully mobilized throughout the duration of interventions, particularly during forest fires.

Machine translation from French. The official text remains authoritative.

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