Bredesen Announces Recovery Act Funding Available for Clean Diesel Technology
Tuesday, August 18, 2009 | 08:15am
NASHVILLE – Governor Phil Bredesen and Department of Environment and Conservation Commissioner Jim Fyke announced today that Tennessee motor carriers can apply for grant rebates to help pay for clean diesel technology for their long-haul trucks. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is providing Tennessee with $1.73 million in funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 to supplement the state’s Idle Smart Clean Diesel Grant program.
“This technology will result in less fuel consumption, reducing costs to Tennessee’s trucking businesses and harmful emissions into our environment,” said Governor Phil Bredesen. “These Recovery Act grants represent an opportunity for Tennessee’s trucking companies and manufacturers of clean diesel technology to make upgrades in difficult economic times, with the important added benefit of improving our air quality.”
Environment and Conservation is partnering with the Tennessee Department of Transportation to get the word to Tennessee’s trucking businesses about the availability of the ARRA funds. Applications are also available on Environment and Conservation’s Recovery Act Web page at www.tn.gov/environment/recovery.
“Reducing fuel consumption has both business and environmental benefits,” said Environment and Conservation Commissioner Jim Fyke. “These Recovery Act grants will make this technology available to even more Tennessee carriers and will benefit all Tennesseans.”
The grant rebates will cover up to 50 percent of the costs of idle reduction technologies, such as auxiliary power units, which provide an alternative to the truck’s main engine when power is needed for electricity or heating and cooling the cab during rest periods. Auxiliary power units use an average of 0.2-0.3 gallons of diesel fuel an hour, compared to the approximately one gallon of diesel fuel used every hour when the truck’s engine is idling. In addition to emitting pollutants such as nitrogen oxides, particulate matter and carbon dioxide, excessive idling also increases maintenance costs and decreases engine life.
"This grant is a great investment in environmental protection and will provide long-term economic benefits for Tennessee," said Stan Meiburg, EPA Acting Regional Administrator in Atlanta. "This funding will go a long way in helping the state to bolster its economy and protect public health and the environment by creating green jobs that improve air quality."
The ARRA Clean Diesel Grant program will target Tennessee trucking companies with 30 or fewer truck tractors registered and operating in the state. Priority will be given to fleets with five or fewer truck tractors. Approximately 85 percent of the 16,000 motor carriers in Tennessee have five or fewer truck tractors in their fleets.
All ARRA funds for this program must be spent by September 2010. Recipients of funding will be required to report data at a regular frequency, which will allow the state to calculate actual fuel savings and actual emissions reductions for each truck.
Information on this grant program and all stimulus funds available through the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation can be found at www.tn.gov/environment/recovery.
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