|
Applications are now open for grant funds to replace or improve heavy-duty off-road diesel equipment eligible under the federal Diesel Emission Reduction Act (DERA). MPCA's grants aim to encourage owners toward choosing new, cleaner diesel, alternative fuels, hybrid or all-electric models.
In 2019, Taylor Trucking Line of Northfield, Minnesota used a DERA grant to convert a diesel-powered terminal tractor to all-electric. The tractor is used to move around semitrailers in the terminal yard.
George Brooks, Taylor’s general manager, said of the conversion, “We like it. We’re getting out of it what we were looking for, a more reliable power train.”
Taylor estimated the conversion will reduce diesel emissions by about 3.5 tons of nitrogen oxides, about a ton of particulates, and 112 tons of carbon dioxide annually.
|
Available grant funds total approximately $1.1 million. The funds will help reduce emissions from older, diesel-powered off-road equipment, and come from Minnesota’s share of the national Volkswagen (VW) settlement and DERA. Grantees will be required to provide a cash match for a percentage of the equipment cost, and the old diesel engine, vehicle, or equipment must be destroyed.
Eligible equipment may include marine engines, locomotives, trailer refrigeration units, terminal tractors, drayage trucks, off-road engines, and equipment or vehicles used in construction, handling of cargo, agriculture, mining, or energy production.
MPCA will host a training for this RFP on July 15. Applications are due Sept. 18, 2020. See the request for proposals for full details on eligibility, grant match amounts, and other information that will help applicants submit a proposal.
Questions? Email vwsettlement.pca@state.mn.us
|
