What Happened?
The city of Smyrna, Georgia—with $184,250 from a federal Energy Efficient and Conservation Block Grant—opened a biodiesel fueling station and began converting its truck fleet to run on recycled cooking oil; it’s estimated that eventual savings from the program will be as much as $25,000 a year.
So What?
In addition to saving the city money, the station, which will convert cooking oil provided by local restaurants and Smyrna residents into clean-burning biodiesel fuel, will benefit the environment. It will also reduce maintenance costs for and extend the life of both city vehicles and the municipal sewer system, because used oil will be going into gas tanks instead of getting dumped down the drain. When fully operational, the program is expected to significantly reduce greenhouse emissions, and reduce the emission of smog-producing unburnt hydrocarbons by up to 50 percent. The plan is also intended to reduce the impact of energy insecurity and fluctuating diesel prices on the city budget.
Goals and Process
Following the installation of two 55-gallon biodiesel plants in the city’s public works building, Smyrna plans to gradually begin converting its 235-vehicle fleet to biodiesel. The city will begin by converting its vehicles’ fuel systems to run on 20 percent biodiesel and 80 percent diesel, or B20. The biodiesel plants will be capable of producing 2,200 gallons of biodiesel per month, or 24,600 gallons per year. Projected gross savings at maximum capacity are $32,000 a year. Projected net savings are $25,000 a year. If those savings are realized, the Smyrna may use some of the surplus to convert a portion of its fleet to B100, so it can run exclusively on biodiesel. The stations are being installed by Tecumseh, Kansas-based Alternative Energy Systems Integrated Solutions, but will be operated in-house by the city’s Public Works Department. A summary of Smyrna’s biodiesel plan is available here.
Smyrna’s plan is based on a more expansive plan undertaken in the city of Hoover, Alabama, which was the subject of an Environmental Protection Agency case study in 2009.
Next Steps
The federal Department of Energy provides a wealth of information about biodiesel its Alternative Fuels Data Center,. Including:
- Information on vehicle and infrastructure requirements
- A guide to local and national incentives and regulations
- Fleet conversion case studies
- Detailed fuel industry data
- Tools, like a “vehicle cost calculator.”
- Information about other alternative fuels
The EECBG program that Smyrna used to fund its biodiesel program was authorized through the 2007 American Reinvestment and Recovery Act. Funding has not been reauthorized, but the National League of Cities (NLC) is lobbying for reauthorization of the program.