States of Indiana and Texas help fleets deploy cleaner fuel vehicles

States of Indiana and Texas help fleets deploy cleaner fuel vehicles

The Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) and the Indiana Volkswagen Environmental Mitigation Trust Fund Committee (Committee) announced Round 2 of the Indiana Volkswagen Environmental Mitigation Trust Program’s grant funding which will distribute awards ranging from $50,000 to $2 million. Total available funding for this round is $9.83 million. Public and private entities may submit applications, and the Request for Proposals (RFP) deadline is May 31, 2020.

Grant money will be awarded to clean air projects that significantly reduce diesel emissions across Indiana, such as replacing older, higher emission diesel garbage trucks or old diesel school buses with newer, cleaner natural gas vehicles. Some of the Round 1 projects included replacing diesel-powered transit buses with electric and CNG transit buses and diesel-powered refuse haulers with CNG refuse haulers.

Moreover, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) announced that up to $7.7 million in grants is being made available to encourage entities that operate large fleets of vehicles in Texas to replace diesel-powered vehicles with alternative fuel or hybrid vehicles. The eligible alternative fuels under the Clean Fleet Program include CNG, LNG and hydrogen. Applications will be accepted until June 30, 2020.

The TCEQ Texas Clean Fleet Program grants are part of the Texas Emissions Reduction Plan and are available to owners of fleets of 75 or more vehicles operating in Texas. Grant applicants must commit to replace at least 10 diesel-powered vehicles with hybrid or alternative fuel vehicles. Projects eligible for funding under this program must include vehicles that will be operating within the Texas Clean Transportation Zone and that will result in a reduction of NOx emissions of at least 25%.

In-person workshops initially planned for the month of April have been canceled. TCEQ will be hosting informational webinars explaining the grant requirements and the application process.

https://www.ngvjournal.com/s1-news/c3-vehicles/united-states-indiana-and-texas-help-fleets-deploy-cleaner-fuel-vehicles/

 

Natural & renewable gas, key actor for European sustainable recovery

The Covid-19 outbreak has unleashed an unprecedented socio-economic global crisis, affecting all citizens and sectors. While the energy sector is subject to extreme pressure stemming from coronavirus, the gas value chain continues to deliver low emission energy to the European industries and millions of citizens on and off the grid. Thanks to its affordability and security of supply, gas remains a crucial solution during the current crisis, but also provides solutions for a sustainable economic recovery.

Thanks to its contributions to emissions reductions across sectors as well as quality job creation in Europe, combined with its affordability and reliability, gaseous energy has a key role to play in sustainable recovery packages aligned with the EU Green Deal objectives.

Therefore, GasNaturally, partnership of seven associations that together represent the whole European gas value chain (including NGVA Europe), urges the EU institutions and Member States to make natural, renewable and decarbonized gases as well as secure and affordable energy supply as a central pillar of the sustainable recovery plans. In particular, they highlight the strategic importance of several points, including:

  • Decarbonizing transport. In 2017, 27% of total EU-28 greenhouse gas emissionscame from the transport sector (22% if international aviation and maritime emissions are excluded). CO2 emissions from transport increased by 2.2% compared with 2016. Natural gas, decarbonized and renewable gases represent a quick and readily available way to complement efforts aimed at decarbonizing the transport and logistics sector. Recognizing their role within the sustainable recovery measures is the best way to ensure a swift restart of a safe, secure, and efficient system which supports European citizens’ mobility and companies’ logistics.

https://www.ngvjournal.com/s1-news/c1-markets/natural-renewable-gas-key-solution-for-european-sustainable-recovery/

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