Driven to change.Byline: Scott Maben The Register-Guard School and transit buses, delivery vans and trucks could be filling up on cleaner-burning diesel in Oregon as early as next year, ahead of more stringent federal fuel standards set to begin in fall 2006. Called ultra-low-sulfur diesel, the new fuel reduces emissions by up to 15 percent. But when it's paired with engine filters and particulate traps, the combination can cut harmful exhaust by up to 95 percent. The potential health benefits are huge, said Kevin Downing, air quality planner with the state Department of Environmental Quality. "Our preliminary determination is that diesel exhaust is the No. 1 risk for cancer from breathing outdoor air," Downing said. Children who ride older school buses are especially at risk, as are elderly people and people with breathing problems or lung disease lung disease Pulmonary disease Pulmonology Any condition causing or indicating impaired lung function Types of LD Obstructive lung disease–↓ in air flow caused by a narrowing or blockage of airways–eg, asthma, emphysema, chronic bronchitis; . Officials aim to steer buses and trucks toward the special diesel first, then light-duty trucks and passenger cars. Exhaust from diesel engines is one of the top air quality concerns in Lane County, pollution control officials say. Diesel emissions contain soot and other particles that can lodge deep in the lungs. They also can trigger asthma and have been linked to increased hospital admissions for respiratory ailments and heart disease. And diesel is a prevalent pollutant pol·lut·ant n. Something that pollutes, especially a waste material that contaminates air, soil, or water. , registering at 748 times the federal benchmark for air contaminants in Oregon, state records show. That's eight times greater than the next 12 most common air pollutants pollutants see environmental pollution. combined. But the cleaner fuel also costs more than regular diesel, limiting its appeal among cash-strapped public agencies and private businesses. The DEQ DEQ Abbreviation for the Incoterm "Delivered Ex Quay." estimates it will cost 3 cents to 5 cents more per gallon in Oregon. Still, the DEQ is trying to drum up demand for the new diesel in the Portland area, initially to fuel school buses, transit district A transit district or transit authority is a special-purpose district organized as either a corporation chartered by statute, or a government agency, created for the purpose of providing public transportation within a specific region. buses and other diesel-powered public fleets. From there, the product could be delivered to other parts of the state, including Eugene-Springfield, Downing said. The Lane Regional Air Pollution Authority is helping recruit public agencies interested in being among the first buyers of ultra-low-sulfur diesel, Director Brian Jennison said. "If we could actually reduce diesel emissions, we could dramatically reduce the air toxics risk in the area," he said. "We might be able to reduce the urban air toxics burden by 90 percent." The air pollution authority has reached out to fleet managers with Lane County, the city of Eugene, the Eugene Water & Electric Board and a Springfield consortium that fuels city, school and park district vehicles. The agency also is applying for federal grants to try to offset the higher cost of the new fuel, or at least promote its use locally. The Lane Transit District is closest to embracing the cleaner fuel, with plans to convert all 100 of its buses to ultra-low-sulfur diesel as soon as a steady, affordable supply line opens to the county. That would account for 900,000 gallons of fuel annually. LTD LTD 1 Laron-type dwarfism 2 Leukotriene D 3 Long-term depression, see there 4. Long-term disability also recently paid $2.3 million for five new articulated buses - the kind that bend in the middle - built to run exclusively on the cleaner grade. The buses are scheduled to go into service in early March, and the district will have the cleaner diesel trucked down from Tacoma, the nearest distribution site. Up to 5,000 gallons can be stored in a tank at LTD's bus yard in Glenwood, said Ron Berkshire, director of maintenance. "We'll temporarily truck it in from Tacoma in hopes that in the next few months it will become available as far south as Eugene," Berkshire said. "At that time, depending on what the premium is, we may convert the whole fleet to ultra-low sulfur diesel Ultra-low sulfur diesel (ULSD) (also spelled “sulphur”) is a term used to describe a standard for defining diesel fuel with substantially lowered sulfur contents. ." Need more users Northwest refiners want to see demand for at least 10 million gallons a year before delivering into Oregon. "Once we get that, we hope there would be a cascading interest in the market," the DEQ's Downing said. Interest from four Portland-area public fleets, including Beaverton School District The Beaverton School District is a school district in suburban Beaverton and Portland, Oregon, United States. It is the third largest school district[1] in the state of Oregon with an estimated enrollment of 35,329 students as of 2005. and TriMet buses, appears to meet the annual threshold of 10 million gallons, he said. Another 1.5 million gallons a year could be sold in Lane County, plus millions more could go to fleets in the central Willamette Valley The Willamette Valley (pronounced [wɪˈlæ.mɪt], with the accent on the second syllable) is the region in northwest Oregon in the United States that surrounds the Willamette River as it proceeds northward from its , the Columbia River Columbia River River, southwestern Canada and northwestern U.S. Rising in the Canadian Rockies, it flows through Washington state, entering the Pacific Ocean at Astoria, Ore.; it has a total length of 1,240 mi (2,000 km). Gorge and Central Oregon Central Oregon is a geographical region lying near the center of the U.S. state of Oregon. It is commonly considered to include Deschutes, Jefferson, and Crook counties. Primary cities in Central Oregon are La Pine, Sunriver, Bend, Redmond, Madras, and Prineville. , he added. "I think it's reasonably easy for us to get 20 to 25 million gallons a year, out of 550 million gallons consumed in Oregon each year," Downing said. But the higher cost to make and ship the cleaner fuel has been a hurdle. Last year, the state solicited bids from oil companies to start the fuel deliveries, but the offers came in too high, Downing said. "We want to see what it will take to get them to further sharpen their pencils," he said. "I'm comfortable in the next six months we will be in a position to have high volumes of ultra-low-sulfur diesel fuel coming into Oregon." It may take a little longer than that, said Doug Smith Doug Smith may refer to:
"It won't be this year," Smith said. "I think next year we'd start to see it move into the area. It's kind of a chicken-or-egg thing: We need to have a market to justify the cost." ConocoPhillips probably would barge the diesel to the Port of Portland initially to avoid contaminating con·tam·i·nate tr.v. con·tam·i·nated, con·tam·i·nat·ing, con·tam·i·nates 1. To make impure or unclean by contact or mixture. 2. To expose to or permeate with radioactivity. adj. it by running it through the same pipelines used for standard diesel, Smith said. The growing Northwest market for the fuel anticipates tough new nationwide diesel emission standards planned by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), independent agency of the U.S. government, with headquarters in Washington, D.C. It was established in 1970 to reduce and control air and water pollution, noise pollution, and radiation and to ensure the safe handling and . By September 2006, fuel suppliers must switch to the ultra-low-sulfur product for all diesel vehicles capable of highway travel, including pickup trucks and passenger cars. With the change, the sulfur content of the diesel will drop to 15 parts per million parts per million mg/kg or ml/l; see ppm. , down from 500 parts per million. In addition, all heavy-duty diesel vehicles sold in the United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. must be manufactured to run only on ultra-low-sulfur fuel starting with the 2007 model year. The next target is off-highway diesel vehicles, including construction and farm equipment, which are 10 times more polluting than on-highway engines. Bulldozers, tractors and similar rigs burn fuel with a much higher sulfur content - 5,000 parts per million. By 2010, they also will be required to use ultra-low sulfur fuel. CAPTION(S): Students at Kelly Middle School in Eugene prepare to board buses in front of the school. A switch to cleaner-burning diesel could have a positive health impact for students who commute by bus. Brian Davies Brian Davies can stand for:
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