Special to 1808Delaware
Three Central Ohio companies with operations that include Delaware County have received air quality grants from the State of Ohio.
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine and Ohio EPA Director Laurie Stevenson have announced that nearly $12 million in grants will be awarded to 40 entities, including 10 Ohio school districts, to reduce nitrogen oxide emissions from diesel vehicles and equipment.
‘Aging diesel vehicles are a major contributor to air pollution across the country, and this program allows Ohio to get some of these vehicles off of our roads,’ said Governor DeWine. ‘The grants will help local schools, governments, and businesses defray the costs of replacing old vehicles with new, environmentally friendly alternatives.’
‘Nitrogen oxide emissions are major contributors to ground-level ozone pollution and older vehicles are a leading source of these emissions. This program results in significant reductions of pollutants, especially in our urban areas, and helps Ohio meet federal air quality standards,’ Ohio EPA Director Laurie A. Stevenson said. ‘This round also includes the first grants awarded for all-electric trucks, reflecting the availability of new vehicle technologies.’
Ohio EPA estimates this year’s grants will remove 36 tons of nitrogen oxide and 7.7 tons of other air pollutants annually.
Local award recipients are:
G & J Pepsi-Cola Bottlers, Inc., Butler, Delaware, Fairfield, Franklin, Licking, Madison, and Warren counties, $729,377 for 25 percent of the cost to replace 30 model year 1996-2009 Class 4-7 diesel-powered local freight trucks with 30 new Class 4-7 diesel-powered local freight trucks; and $254,000 for 25 percent of the cost to replace nine model year 2003-2007 Class 8 diesel-powered local freight trucks with nine new Class 8 diesel-powered local freight trucks;
Mansfield Oil Company, Delaware, Franklin, Licking, and Madison counties; $163,425 for 20 percent of the cost to replace two model year 2003 and 2004 Class 8 diesel-powered local freight trucks with two new Class 8 diesel-powered local freight trucks;
Scioto Ready Mix, Delaware, Franklin, and Licking counties, $187,500 for 25 percent of the cost to replace five model year 1999 Class 8 diesel-powered local freight trucks with five new Class 8 diesel-powered local freight trucks;
The grants are funded from dollars allocated to Ohio from the settlement of an enforcement action taken against Volkswagen and its affiliated companies by U.S. EPA and the state of California for violations under the Clean Air Act. During his time as Attorney General, Governor DeWine, along with other state attorneys general, worked to ensure that states would receive their share of funding from the settlement. The grant program is investing $75 million over 10 years to reduce nitrogen oxide pollution in Ohio. This is the third year for the program. Selection considerations were given for specifically targeted reduction categories (e.g. school and transit buses, and heavy-duty trucks) and to vehicle replacement projects that would produce the largest reduction of nitrogen oxide emissions for the grant dollars invested.
The organizations and businesses receiving grants were selected by a committee of Ohio EPA and Ohio Department of Transportation representatives. Ohio EPA has posted a copy the state’s Beneficiary Mitigation Plan for spending these funds on the Agency’s VW program webpage.
