The U.S. EPA has announced three recovery act grants totaling $20 million in funding for the SmartWay Clean Diesel Finance Program. These recovery act grants will fund the purchase of new, cleaner or retrofitted vehicles and equipment, protecting air quality and creating and retaining jobs in three communities across the country. The program works to reduce premature deaths, asthma attacks and other respiratory ailments, lost work days and other health impacts every year.
The recovery act grants were awarded to the following organizations:
- Houston-Galveston Area Council: $9 million for a revolving loan program to clean up trucks at the Port of Houston through replacements and retrofits using SmartWay-verified technologies.
- Cascade Sierra Solutions: $9 million for revolving loan, lease or bond programs to replace older diesel trucks or upgrade them with clean, fuel saving technologies such as idle reduction equipment, fuel efficient tires and aerodynamic devices.
- Louisville Jefferson Metro County Government: $2 million for a revolving loan program to replace, repower or retrofit older construction, agricultural and other nonroad diesel equipment.
Overall, the recovery act allotted $300 million for the National Clean Diesel Campaign, $30 million of which will fund SmartWay Clean Diesel Finance Program grants. For more information on EPA’s implementation of the recovery act, click here. For more information on EPA’s clean diesel initiatives, click here.