City Fuels Biodiesel Program
April 5, 2005
The City of Richmond will begin using biodiesel fuel for its vehicles on April 11, 2005, to enhance the environment through the reduction of greenhouse gasses.
In 2004, City Council endorsed a fleet pilot project utilizing biodiesel fuel for two heavy-duty diesel vehicles over the course of several months. Richmond led the process of establishing testing protocols to ensure the consistent reporting of data, while sharing expertise among five other local participating BC municipalities. The test results confirmed the positive Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) findings published for biodiesel emission and overall performance, and also proved significant reductions in particulate matter (PM), carbon dioxide (CO) and hydrocarbons (HC) with no apparent reduction in power or operating performance.
With the success of this pilot project, City Council has given the green light to replace its diesel fuel to a minimum 5 per cent blend, or B5 blend, of biodiesel fuel beginning April 11. “This move towards greater fuel efficiency will reduce vehicle exhaust emissions, and cut greenhouse gas emissions in our environment,” says Greg Scott, the City’s Director of Operations. “The pilot project exemplified positive results to our environment by reducing harmful gas emissions.”
“The City is proud to be a national leader by participating in the BC Biofleet Program,” says Mayor Malcolm Brodie. “Council is committed to protecting and enhancing our environment, and we are pleased about the benefits this program will provide for our environmental sustainability.”
Biodiesel fuel is a cleaner-burning fuel produced from renewable sources such as used vegetable oils, animal fats and grease, soy, canola and hemp. Although biodiesel is slightly more expensive than regular diesel, the positive environmental effects outweigh the current marginal increase in purchase costs.
In addition to the biodiesel fuel program, the City will gradually replace its light vehicles with hybrid cars to further reduce greenhouse gas emissions and overall operating costs.
The City of Richmond is working on this project in collaboration with the cities of North Vancouver, Vancouver, Burnaby, the Corporation of Delta, and the Resort Municipality of Whistler.
