PROVIDENCE – Mayor David N. Cicilline announced that Providence is the only New England city to receive a $565,000 federal stimulus grant to transform 42 City trucks into greener vehicles. He made the announcement at the Department of Public Works garage where 30 trucks will be retrofitted with state-of-the-art diesel emissions technology, reducing emissions by as much as 90% per vehicle.
“This federal grant will enable us to take an important step towards protecting our environment by making smart investments in new technology,” said Mayor Cicilline. “These upgrades will help to improve air quality in our city as we focus on rebuilding our economy for the 21st-century and create green-sector jobs.”
“As the second largest city in New England, we cannot underestimate the lasting importance of Providence's actions today to reduce diesel emissions in its fleet,” said Annie Costner, Campaign Coordinator, Clean Water Action. “Rhode Island's cities and towns as well as our neighbors in other states benefit from this forward-thinking, highly practical approach to pollution prevention that ought to be the norm everywhere.”
The American Reinvestment and Recovery Act (ARRA) grant is part of the National Diesel Emissions Reduction Campaign and is being administered through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). In addition to retrofitting 30 DPW trucks, the funds will be used to install emissions control technology in vehicles in the Parks Department, Traffic Engineering, Communications and Recreation Departments.
Based on the EPA’s emissions reductions calculations, the advanced pollution control technology will reduce harmful particulate matter by 3.75 tons, hydrocarbons by 5.27 tons and carbon monoxide by 16.97 over the lifetime of the retrofitted equipment.
##
