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Berkeley Uses Environment Friendly Biodiesel Power in most city vehicles
Garbage trucks and big red fire engines are turning into green machines, or at least greener ones, as Berkeley goes biodiesel in hopes of greasing the wheels of environmental progress.
By MICHELLE LOCKE The Bozeman Chronicle
"We think it’s an important contribution to the air quality of our city and the quality of life of our people," Mayor Tom Bates said as he announced the new policy this week.
The program started in January, with 180 of Berkeley’s 200 or so diesel-powered vehicles converting to biodiesel, a process that requires no adjustments. After six months of testing, the city announced the switch on Tuesday.
Several cities use a 20 percent biodiesel-regular diesel blend to fuel their fleets, but Berkeley is unusual in its commitment to use 100 percent biodiesel, said Jenna Higgins, spokeswoman for the National Biodiesel Board based in Jefferson City, Mo.
"I think it’s fantastic," she said.
Biodiesel can be made from many sources, including used restaurant grease and virgin soybean oil. It produces about half as many harmful emissions as regular diesel, Higgins said.
Using biodiesel, though, will make the city budget a little fatter _ an estimated $150,000 extra this year. Biodiesel costs about 1 cent extra for every percentage point, meaning the 20 percent blend is 20 cents more and pure biodiesel costs about $1 a gallon more, said Higgins.
However, city officials say cleaner air is worth the cost and they expect prices to drop as biodiesel becomes more popular. Some years ago, biodiesel cost several dollars a gallon more than regular diesel.
Berkeley has more than 400 city vehicles and about half have diesel engines. The rest consists of conventional gasoline-powered vehicles, some powered by electric or hybrid engines, and a few that run on compressed natural gas.
About 20 diesel vehicles haven’t switched, mostly fire trucks stationed in hard-to-reach hilly areas that have a tough time making the run to the biodiesel refueling station.
Driving biodiesel makes "absolutely no difference" in engine performance, said Dave Williamson, operations manager for the nonprofit Ecology Center, which contracts with the city to pick up recyclables and has been using biodiesel since March 2001.
An added advantage: Exhaust that smells a bit like french fries rather than eau de tar pit.
Before switching to biodiesel, the recycling center looked "like it had a small fire," when all 10 trucks fired up to go out in the morning. Now, "it smells like a fast-food restaurant until all the trucks take off," Williamson said.
Bates noted that Berkeley often gets dinged for its political firsts. In fall 2001, for instance, angry e-mails poured in from across the country after the City Council criticized the bombing of Afghanistan.
But the city also has pioneered practical changes, Bates said, such as putting in curb cuts, the handy dips at street corners that make it easier for people in wheelchairs to cross the street, and passing comprehensive smoking bans.
"When something happens in Berkeley," said Bates, "it spreads."
On the Net:
http://bozemandailychronicle.com/articles/2003/06/26/ap/HiTech/apnews45920-06.txt
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