EPA Awards More than $4.8 million for Clean Diesel Projects in New England
PROVIDENCE – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is awarding a total of $4,835,644 in grants to fund projects and programs that will help reduce diesel emissions in Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island.
"EPA is proud to support our partners as they deliver cleaner air benefits to local communities across the country," said EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler. "New diesel engines operate cleaner than older engines, and for each dollar invested in clean diesel projects, communities get $13 in cumulative health benefits."
"These EPA grants will mean cleaner air for communities in Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Reducing diesel emissions from heavy machinery is a cost-effective way to improve air quality for nearby communities," said EPA New England Regional Administrator Dennis Deziel. "EPA makes it a priority to help our municipal partners achieve cleaner air in their communities. These diesel grants have lasting pollution reductions that will make a difference for many years."
DERA-funded projects typically include retrofitting or replacing legacy school buses, transit buses, heavy-duty diesel trucks, marine engines, locomotives, and other heavy-duty equipment with new, cleaner technologies. To support EPA's clean air goals, the agency anticipates awarding four grants once all legal and administrative requirements are satisfied for clean diesel projects under the DERA National Grants Program:
Connecticut Maritime Foundation will receive $733,743 to help replace four unregulated propulsion engines and two unregulated auxiliary engines with new Tier 3 certified engines in two tugboats operating in the Port of New Haven and the waters of southern Connecticut.
American Lung Association, in partnership with Sysco Corporation, will receive $631,962 to help replace 21 regional-haul freight trucks currently with model year 2007 or older engines with new model year 2020 or newer trucks primarily operating in Plymouth, Middlesex, Norfolk, Suffolk, and Worcester Counties, Massachusetts.
Massachusetts Port Authority (Massport) will receive $387,266 to replace four Tier 1 propulsion engines in two pilot boats with four new engines meeting Tier 3 certification. The pilot boats are owned and operated by the Boston Harbor Pilots Association.
Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (RIDEM) will receive $410,410 to help replace four pre-1999 Class 8 port drayage trucks with new trucks and replace two Tier 1 or older nonroad port terminal equipment with newer equipment certified to meet the latest EPA standards. Trucks and equipment service the Port of Providence.
In addition to the DERA National Grant awards described above, EPA has allocated, under the 2020 DERA State Grants Program, $2,672,263 to the six New England states to support their diesel emissions reduction efforts.
Background
The nearly $5 million in funding for New England projects is part of over $73 million in grants and funding nationally to be awarded to support numerous clean diesel programs and projects across the country at the state and local level. Over $50 million in Diesel Emissions Reduction Act (DERA) National Grants Program funding is expected to be awarded to implement projects aimed at reducing diesel emissions from the nation's existing fleet of old, dirty engines and vehicles. Additionally, EPA anticipates providing approximately $23.5 million under DERA's 2020 State Grants program to 48 states and four territories to implement their own diesel emissions reduction programs.
Under President Trump, the combined emission of criteria pollutants and their precursors dropped 7%. In the past three years, we saw the following drops in emissions of criteria and precursor pollutants:
- Nitrogen Oxides (NOx) ↓ 10 %
- Particulate Matter 2.5 (PM 2.5) ↓ 1 %
- Sulfur Dioxide (SO2) ↓ 16%
- Carbon monoxide (CO) ↓ 6%
- Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC) ↓ 3%
Over the last three years during the Trump Administration, EPA will have awarded about $300 million in grants and rebates to modernize the diesel fleet and speed the turnover to cleaner on- and off-road heavy-duty trucks and equipment. Much of this assistance has been provided to help better protect areas of poor air quality and areas of highly concentrated diesel pollution, such as ports and distribution centers.
More information on EPA's DERA program: https://www.epa.gov/dera