The German Environmental Aid Agency (Deutschen Umwelthilfe, DUH), in collaboration with the Institute of Environmental Physics of the University of Heidelberg, carried out in December 2015 and January a study to measure the air quality in Stuttgart and the quantity of NO₂ (nitrogen dioxide) in the air. The results showed that pollutants highly exceed the legal limits. The reasons for that were diesel powered vehicles.

“As a consequence of the strong nitrogen dioxide pollution from diesel vehicles in Stuttgart, there will be an increased support to  low-emission alternative fuels such as Autogas,” said Rainer Scharr, Chairman of the German Association of LPG and managing partner of Stuttgart-based company Friedrich Scharr KG, on the occasion of the current measurement results of DUH in Stuttgart.

Autogas emits virtually no dust and no nitrogen oxides. Compared to diesel, NOx emissions are reduced by an average of 99%. “The rapid extension of the tax advantage for alternative fuel vehicles beyond 2018, given the high pollution levels in Germany, is unavoidable and positive,” commented Scharr.

In Germany, the European Environment Agency has complained about 10,000 annual premature deaths due to the high NO₂ levels, as in many cities, including Stuttgart, the legal limits for nitrogen dioxide are exceeded for years.