Bluer Skies Coming to Greensboro

The City of Greensboro will be seeing bluer skies this spring thanks to a significant move towards the use of compressed natural gas (CNG) by the city's fleet services department. The city will soon deploy two rear loading CNG refuse trucks, which will be 'wrapped' in public service messaging promoting the air quality benefits of using CNG. Fueling the city's move to CNG - and the trucks - is a newly installed CNG pumping station at the fleet department's premises. The two trucks will each average about 520 gallons of gasoline equivalent (GGE) of CNG per month.

City of Greensboro's new CNG station

The installed station is a slow-fill system accommodating two trucks, each taking 4 hours to fill. This can easily be accomplished in the evening after refuse hauling is complete. The station was installed with expansion capability - the city will be able to install another similar slow-fill compressor, or move towards a fast fill system. In either case, Steve Simpson, who was formerly Equipment Services Division Manager for the city but is now serving as management consultant until the project is deployed, couldn't be more pleased with the fuel savings benefits:

"Over the past few years, the increased cost of using diesel fuel has had a negative effect on Greensboro's operating budget. The fuel savings from using CNG in our two new class 8 trucks should equate to $10,000 per truck annually, a 50% fuel cost reduction."

Guilford County is currently a non-attainment area for air quality standards. The use of a cleaner burning fuel like natural gas will help reduce some of the pollutants contributing to poor air quality in the Triad. Greensboro's CNG project was funded by the Triangle Clean Cities Program through the Carolina Blue Skies, Green Jobs Initiative (U.S. DOE ARRA), which Clean Transportation Program has been managing for close to two years. The city will host a ribbon cutting and public media event this summer to heighten awareness of this important and valuable investment.

Raleigh Police Deploy LPG Patrol Cars, Adding More

In May 2011, the Raleigh Police Department put ten 2011 Crown Victoria bi-fuel (gasoline/propane--LPG) patrol cars into service at their North District Head Quarters on Six Forks Road. Over approximately nine months, the program has displaced 16,500 gallons of gasoline with a positive impact on the environment, as well as their budget. While in use, the vehicles are operating 90-95% of the time on LPG. The department and officers are extremely pleased with integration and performance of these vehicles. As a result, they have ten additional LPG patrol cars on order. All current vehicles have seen daily use since deployment. The only down time has been due to vehicle wrecks occurring in the line of duty which is common for the entire police patrol fleet. The incidents and severe duty cycle usage in the patrol environment have served as a good durability test. There have been no safety incidents or compromise of the propane systems, as a result of the incidents or in regular duty service. The vehicles are fueled via an onsite storage tank and pump. The equipment was provided at no charge from the propane supplier, Blossom Gas.

The Raleigh Police Department LPG project was funded in part through Carolina Blue Skies & Green Jobs, an initiative of Triangle Clean Cites/Triangle J Council of Governments with American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds provided by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Clean Cities program.

President Obama Visited Mount Holly

On Wednesday, March 7 President Obama visited the Daimler Trucks North America Manufacturing plant in Mount Holly. During his 20 minute speech to a crowd of several hundred gathered inside on the manufacturing plant floor, he addressed the adoption of an “all-of-the-above” approach to American energy. The president also focused his address on American fuel sources and reducing dependence on imported petroleum.

“If we are going to control our energy future, then we’ve got to have an all-of-the-above strategy,” President Obama said. “We’ve got to develop every source of American energy -- not just oil and gas, but wind power and solar power, nuclear power, biofuels. We need to invest in the technology that will help us use less oil in our cars and our trucks, in our buildings, in our factories. That’s the only solution to the challenge.”

The President explained his approach is about reclaiming energy security, facilitate economic development, and igniting innovation. By using American energy sources and increasing research, development, and production of related advanced technologies, the president said jobs and economic opportunity can be created in communities, and in greater Charlotte region.

Jason Wager and Emily Parker (Co-Coordinators of the Centralina Clean Fuels Coalition) were invited and attended the event at the Daimler plant, as local representatives of the Clean Cities program. Many Centralina project partners and stakeholders were involved with the set up, security, and planning of the event.

More information on energy initiatives can be found here.