Press Release
Harrisburg, PA – The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) announced today funding for more than $2.7 million in Alternative Fuel Incentive Grants (AFIGs) to 18 cleaner fuel transportation projects statewide that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions and other air pollutants.
“These projects will help every single Pennsylvanian breathe cleaner air at school, in their communities, and at their workplaces,” said DEP Executive Deputy Secretary Ramez Ziadeh. “The impact of these grants is not limited to a specific city block or bound by a municipal property line.”
The AFIG Program funds projects that replace older gasoline- or diesel-fueled vehicles with cleaner fuel vehicles that helps reduce emissions of carbon monoxide, particulate matter, volatile organic compounds, nitrogen oxides, and carbon dioxide, a principal greenhouse gas.
The program supports electric, ethanol, biodiesel, compressed natural gas (CNG), propane gas, and other cleaner fuel vehicles. It also supports the installation of fueling stations for these vehicles.
Transportation generates 47 percent of nitrogen oxide emissions in Pennsylvania, contributing to the formation of ground-level ozone. Vehicles alone release 21 percent of carbon dioxide emissions in the state, a known greenhouse gas and direct contributor to climate chance. This affects the health of children; older people; people with lung diseases, such as asthma and emphysema; and those who work or are active outdoors. The state Department of Health has found that asthma-related emergency room visits increase when air quality is very poor.
AFIG grants are awarded for projects in three categories: Vehicle Retrofit and/or Purchasing; Refueling Infrastructure; and Innovative Technology. The 2021 AFIG funded projects will put 87 cleaner fuel school buses, package delivery trucks, and other vehicles in use, and save an estimated 262,798 gasoline equivalents (GGE) from the atmosphere. Four new refueling stations – 3 electric and 1 propane – have the potential to displace the equivalent of an additional 220,000 gallons of gasoline (GGE).
The projects are collectively anticipated to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by nearly 600 metric tons per year.
Over two-thirds of this year’s funding will go towards projects either in or serving Environmental Justice areas. These communities are defined by DEP as any census tract where 20 percent or more of residents live at or below the federal poverty line, and/or 30 percent or more of the population identifies as a non-white minority. Low income and minorities are especially vulnerable to the negative impacts of pollution and focusing resources in these areas is an essential step in mitigating these disproportionate effects.
Local governments, schools, businesses, and organizations may apply for AFIG funding. DEP administers the AFIG Program under the Pennsylvania Alternative Fuels Incentive Act of 2004, originally established under Act 166 of 1992.
More information about the program can be found at www.dep.pa.gov/AFIG
Grouped by category and county, the 2021 funded projects are as follows:
Vehicle Retrofit and/or Purchasing Awards
Berks
Wilson School District: $76,000 in AFIG funding for the purchase of nine (9) propane school buses to continue District’s fleet conversion. Estimated GGE saved per year: 14,817
Lackawanna
LT Verrastro, Inc: $300,000 in AFIG for the purchase of eight (8) CNG tractor trailers. Estimated GGE saved per year: 28,571
Montgomery
Mitzvah Circle Foundation: $40,000 in AFIG funding for the purchase of an electric Ford Transit van. Estimated GGE saved per year: 3,538
Northampton
Fresh Hills Market: $22,500 in AFIG funding for the purchase of three Tesla electric vehicles. Estimated GGE saved per year: 10,794
Bethlehem Parking Authority: $24,500 in AFIG funding for the purchase of four (4) Chevy Bolt EVs. Estimated GGE saved per year: 1,040
Philadelphia
School District of Philadelphia: $300,000 in AFIG funding for the purchase of three (3) electric school buses at the District’s Passyunk location. Estimated GGE saved per year: 4,573
School District of Philadelphia: $300,000 in AFIG funding for the purchase of three (3) electric school buses at the District’s Broad Street location. Estimated GGE saved per year: 4,573
Venango
R N Goss Gas Products Co: $19,624 in AFIG funding for the purchase of two (2) propane delivery trucks. Estimated GGE saved per year: 8,334
Washington
East Washington Borough: $7,500 in AFIG funding for the purchase of one (1) Tesla Model 3 EV for the Borough’s police force. Estimated GGE saved per year: 789
Multicounty
Driven2Drive LLC: $30,000 in AFIG for the purchase of 4 Tesla Model 3 electric vehicles to upgrade the driver’s education fleet in Chester and Montgomery counties. Estimated GGE saved per year: 4,706
Iron Mountain Information Management Services, Inc: $90,000 in AFIG funding for the purchase of 12 electric vans for fleets in Allegheny, Beaver, Chester, Delaware, Erie. Estimated GGE saved per year: 13,500
Nuvve of Pennsylvania: $300,000 in AFIG funding for the purchase of ten (10) electric school buses to be used in Washington, Mercer, and Allegheny counties. Estimated GGE saved per year: 18,462
Thompson Gas LLC: $280,125 in AFIG funding for the purchase of 27 class 3+ propane delivery vehicles at the LKQ locations in York and Bethlehem. Estimated GGE saved per year: 141,600
Refueling Infrastructure Awards
Allegheny
EVgo Services LLC: $197,042 in AFIG funds for the installation of a 4-unit DC Fast Charger with full public access in Homestead, PA. Estimated GGE saved per year: 18,214
EVgo Services LLC: $156,000 in AFIG funds for the installation of a 4-unit DC Fast Charger with full public access in Pleasant Hills, PA. Estimated GGE saved per year: 18,214
Multicounty
Iron Mountain Information Management Services Inc: $42,000 in AFIG funding for the installation of Level 2 chargers at 5 locations in Erie, Allegheny, Beaver, Chester, and Delaware counties. Estimated GGE saved per year: 1,100
Thompson Gas LLC: $159,000 in AFIG funding to installing two propane autogas refueling infrastructures to fuel LKQ’s retrofitted fleet vehicles at their respective branch locations in York and Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Estimated GGE saved per year: 128,304
Innovative Technology Projects
Centre
EC Power Group, Inc: $418,300 in AFIG funding for the development of the design for a thermally modulated lithium iron phosphate (TM-LFP) battery that offers both high performance and low cost that will offer a manufacturing cost of $90/kWh, potentially as low as $50/kWh, whereas current prices of automotive batteries today are ~$135/kWh, will have an 11 minute recharge time, and an expected battery life over 20 years and 1 million miles.
Author: Amaury Abreu
