States unveiling clean-vehicle grant programs

States are continuing to rollout their own grant programs funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (AARA) of 2009, which allocated states $1.73 million each for Clean Diesel State Program Recovery Grants. According to the U.S. Department of Energy’s most recent National Idling Reduction Network News, Wisconsin and South Carolina are among those states with grant monies currently available for application.

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources has established the ARRA Wisconsin Clean Diesel Grant Program to help reduce diesel emissions from both public and private vehicle fleets across the state. According to the state, funds will be dispersed between on-road, off-road, and stationary engine projects. Each fleet applicant may apply for up to a total of $100,000 (excluding match dollars) for exhaust control retrofit devices (grant covers 100%), idle reduction devices (grant covers 50%), engine emission upgrades (grant covers 100%), engine repowers (grant covers 75%), and/or equipment replacement (grant covers 25%). In some but not all cases, matching funds are required.

In South Carolina, approximately 40% of that state’s AARA funds will be distributed through a competitive sub-grant process for diesel emissions reduction projects. Approximately $600,000 will be available. The application deadline is July 13, 2009. Eligible projects include but are not limited to: EPA or California’s Air Resource Board (CARB) verified and/or certified retrofit technologies and engines (See EPA’s Verified Technology List); projects on the EPA's Emerging Technology List; engine repowers, engine rebuilds, or engine replacements (engines sent to be remanufactured or scrapped); EPA-verified idle reduction technologies (e.g. auxiliary power units, truck stop electrification); and cleaner fuels.

Grant programs vary state-to-state. Some states are targeting transit or school bus fleets only, for example, while others have funding available for truck fleets as well. The grantees also vary state-by-state. In some cases, the state Department of Environmental Quality is awarding the grants; in others it may be the Department of Natural Resources, the Pollution Control Agency or a Department of Public Health and Environment. A complete list by state is available at: www.epa.gov/otaq/eparecovery/progstate.htm.