Buncombe County Government, NC Asheville-Buncombe Air Quality Agency, 28 Jun 2011

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From YouTube: GrowBC - Greener - Reducing Diesel Emissions

Description

The Western North Carolina Regional Air Quality Agency (WNCRAQA) was awarded a $31,500 grant through the North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources (NC DENR) Diesel Emissions -- Economic Recovery Grant Program to reduce diesel emissions from the emergency response fleets in Buncombe County and the City of Asheville. Project partners include: the Buncombe County Fire Marshal's Office, seven local Fire Departments (City of Asheville, Broad River, Black Mountain, Enka-Candler, Skyland, Swannanoa, and West Buncombe), and the of Land of Sky Regional Council's Clean Vehicles Coalition. Diesel oxidation catalysts (DOCs) were installed on 20 pre-2007 fire engines utilized by the seven fire departments. Fire trucks must idle when responding to a fire because the different types of engines are utilized to pump water, operate ladders, and to pressurize the brakes so that the engines will be ready to respond quickly to another call if necessary. This means that the vehicles will idle, sometimes for hours, burning fuel and releasing pollution. The DOCs have been EPA-verified to reduce particulate matter emissions by 20%, hydrocarbon emissions by 66%, and carbon monoxide emissions by 41%. DOCs are currently the best retrofit option for fire engines.

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All vehicles idle from time to time or both vehicles- it is for a matter of seconds, but due to how they are used. Fire trucks may idle one or several hours. They must idle when responding to a fire. For several reasons, the engines need to be ready to respond quickly to another call, if necessary, the motor is needed to operate ladders, to pump water and to keep the brakes pressurized.

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This means that the vehicles idle burning fuel and emitting pollution, 2007 and newer diesel engines are equipped with pollution control devices, including diesel, oxidation catalyst or do CS and particulate filters. Unlike cars, which the US Department of Transportation say have an average life of 12 years, the average replacement cycle for a diesel fired truck engine in buncombe county is approximately 20 years. Older diesel engines contribute significantly to air pollution in North Carolina.

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The Western North Carolina regional air quality agency was awarded a thirty one thousand five hundred dollar grant through the North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources diesel emissions, economic recovery grant program designed to reduce diesel emissions from the emergency response, fleets and buncombe county and the city of oxbow retrofitting pre-2007 diesel engines with pollution control devices such as do CS can result in significant reductions in pollution.

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The Western, North Carolina regional air quality agency worked with a fire marshal's office to install 20 diesel oxidation catalysts on pre-2007 fire engines and seven fire departments in buncombe county and the city of Asheville diesel. Oxidation catalyst can be installed on own Road and off-road diesel engines and run on regular diesel fuel. The technology has been in use for several years and does not involve an increase in maintenance costs.

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The diesel oxidation catalyst used in this project have been EPA verified to reduce particulate matter emissions by twenty percent hydrocarbon emissions by sixty-six percent and carbon monoxide emissions by forty-one percent. It's estimated that the reduction in pollution associated with this project is between one and two tons per year.

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This project is one of the first of its kind to address diesel emissions from emergency response vehicles in the eighth southeastern state region. The agency hopes to create a case study that can be used by other emergency response departments to implement similar projects.

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Congress has appropriated funds for the diesel emissions reduction program that gives EPA grant and loan authority to promote diesel emission reductions. Once there North Carolina regional air quality agency will be working to let other public and private fleet managers know about the benefits and potential funding sources available for similar projects to help improve air quality even more in our area.

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