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| Axel Taferner/flickr |
Alco Transportation in southwest Detroit
had a bunch of big, old semi-trucks.
The company wanted to bring their fleet
up to date and in line with federal diesel emissions standards.
But being green isn’t cheap when you’re
hauling steel.
What does that increase look like to a
trucking guy? “We could buy an old truck for $30,000,” Burcham said.
But
over the past couple of years, Alco retired 11 of its trucks and replaced them
with new, cleaner diesel rigs, thanks to a $360,000 grant that helped lessen
the financial blow of new truck purchases.
Detroit truckers, manufacturers and
residents are benefitting from federal efforts to clean up diesel.
But the
federal program that doles out the money to replace older diesel engines is in
its last year of authorization and facing a cut under President Obama’s latest
budget proposal.
“There are both environmental and
economic incentives to continue investing in the newest diesel technology,”
said Allen Schaeffer, executive director of the Diesel Technology Forum, a
national nonprofit organization that advocates for diesel engines and fuel.
Tons of air pollutants
reduced
Older diesel engines spew a toxic mix of
pollutants including nitrogen oxides and particulate matter. Such emissions
have been linked to respiratory problems and cancer.
In response, federal rules have forced
manufacturers to curb diesel engines’ emissions. In 2007 the EPA mandated that
heavy-duty vehicles had to reduce harmful pollution by more than 90 percent.
Starting in 2010, manufacturers had to further reduce nitrogen oxide emissions.
Manufacturers “are getting engines to
near zero emissions,” Schaeffer said.
But fleets are also seeing benefits in
their bottom line.
Schaeffer said heavy-duty trucks made
after 2010 are about 5 to 8 percent more fuel-efficient than those built prior.
To
help companies replace aging diesel equipment, the U.S. started the Diesel
Emissions Reduction Act under former President Bush in 2005. The program gives
out federal money to help diesel users get newer, cleaner technology.
The diesel cleanups in Detroit are
spearheaded by the Southwest Detroit Environmental Vision organization, which
has passed out more than $12 million in federal diesel grants to clean up a
region that has long struggled with poor air.
The industry and traffic in southwest Detroit “is good for the economy and jobs, but the resulting air pollution is significant,” Striz Calnin said. She added the region has a higher percentage of children than other parts of the city and many struggle with asthma.
The rate of asthma for Detroit children
is about 30 percent – 3 times the national average, according to the Detroit
Alliance for Asthma Awareness.
Cleaner diesels mean healthier
communities: A 2013 EPA report to
Congress reported that new and upgraded diesel engines have led to 1,400 fewer
premature deaths and between $3.4 million and $8.2 million in savings due to
fewer hospital visits.
But the future of the helpful federal
money is up in the air.
Funding in jeopardy
New diesel technology has spread. About
32 percent of U.S. trucks on the road today are engines made in 2007 or later,
and about 15 percent are using the engines made 2011 or after, Schaeffer said.
Michigan is slightly below the national
average with about 28 percent of its fleet using 2007 or newer technology, he
said.
However, the federal money states use to
replace and upgrades fleets has been shrinking. President Obama’s proposed 2016
budget includes just $10 million dollars for the federal Diesel Emissions
Reduction Act, a $20 million cut to current funding, Schaeffer said.
During recent federal budget proposals
the diesel industry has “gone through this Kabuki dance,” Schaeffer said.
“The past few years the administration
has proposed zero and then Congress has restored it to some level,” he said.
“So the fact that they didn’t propose cutting it completely this year is
something we’ll embrace.”
Both
industry and environmental groups in past years have advocated for sustained
funding.
In addition the Diesel Emissions
Reductions Act is in its final year of authorization. In 2010, President Obama
signed legislation that guaranteed some level of funding through 2016.
Nothing is guaranteed beyond that.
“For trucking companies, the number one
emissions reduction strategy is getting new equipment,” said Mike Tunnel,
director of energy and environmental affairs at American Trucking Associations.
“And this program has been a big part of that.”
The program could be the difference when
companies decide whether or not to clean their fleet, Tunnel said.
“There are some companies that are able
to do this on their own, which is great, but other companies this allows them
to do it sooner than they would have,” Tunnel said.
The Detroit Water and Sewage Department,
for example, replaced nine older diesels over the past two years with about 18
percent of the costs covered by EPA grants, said Kelly Jezierski, director,
energy storage at Detroit nonprofit NextEnergy, which helped the department
secure the grants.
The savings from federal money meant
almost two new diesel trucks at no cost for the department, Jezierski said.
Striz Calnin said most companies they
reach out to are receptive to the program. “They want their fleets up to date
and in good shape because it’s good for business, but cost is part of that,”
she said.
She said the companies cannot use the
funding to grow their fleet. In order to get a new truck or engine, an older
one needs to go.
The “only green option”
Diesel still powers the big engines that
are the backbone to U.S. commerce.
“It’s the predominant technology in
commercial trucking,” Schaeffer said. “It’s unmatched when you look at energy
efficiency and performance torque, and is reliable and durable.”
And for companies like Alco, which has
trucks that haul an average of 90,000 pounds of steel around Metro Detroit,
decreasing emissions is a priority but power is still crucial.
“We need big engines, a lot of fuel.
Lighter duty trucks with better fuel economy can’t cut it for what we do,”
Burcham said. “Our only green option was to replace the old ones.”
For questions or feedback about this
piece, contact Brian Bienkowski at bbienkowski@ehn.org.