PEORIA, Ariz. (Feb. 21,
2007) – Peoria received an $80,000 grant from the Gila River Indian Community
and will use the funds to install an ethanol tank to fuel city vehicles. The
grant check was presented during the Peoria City Council meeting on Tuesday,
Feb. 20.
Expanding bio-fuel
capability has been a priority for Peoria Fleet Manager Warren Laing, and the
grant funding from the Gila River Indian Community has accelerated that effort.
“The money from the
Gila River Indian Community moved our plans up by four or five years – we’re now
a leader among municipalities in bio-fuel capability,” he said.
Adding ethanol
capability to the city’s fleet will have an annual greenhouse gas impact equal
to removing 13 vehicles from the road. In the course of a year, a vehicle
burning E-85 uses about 1/3 the petroleum products and produces 20% less
greenhouse gases (including carbon dioxide and methane) than the same vehicle
burning standard gasoline, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency.
Peoria’s fleet
currently has about 65 vehicles that can burn the ethanol fuel, called E-85
because it is a blend of 85% ethanol and 15% petroleum gasoline. When possible
in the future, the city will purchase E-85 capable vehicles when replacing older
models – the goal is to have bio-fuel capability (E-85 or bio-diesel) in 75% of
its fleet in five years. There is no additional cost to purchase an E-85 vehicle
versus a vehicle that cannot take the fuel.
In fall 2005, Peoria
introduced bio-diesel to its fleet, a move that displaced about 3,000 barrels of
foreign oil annually in favor of a domestically produced bio-fuel. Laing
estimates that adding the E-85 capability will displace an additional 1,000
barrels of foreign oil per year – a number that will rise as new,
ethanol-capable machines replace older vehicles over time.
With the grant funding
in had, Peoria is purchasing an ethanol tank and arranging its installation at
the city’s municipal operations center. The goal is to have the infrastructure
ready and begin using the E-85 fuel this May.
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MEDIA CONTACT: Warren
Laing, Fleet Manager, 623-773-7460
EMISSIONS INFO:
Environmental Protection Agency:
www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/byfueltype.htm
