Skip to main content

Clean diesel projects ‘best choice for use of VW settlement’

Clean diesel technology is the best choice for mitigating NOx emissions in the US as part of the Volkswagen Environmental Mitigation Trust, according to the non-profit education association Diesel Technology Forum. In a presentation at the 2017 Energy Policy Outlook Conference hosted by the National Association of State Energy Officials (NASEO), Ezra Finkin, the policy director for the Forum, highlighted why clean diesel technology is the best and most cost-effective choice for the immediate mitigation
February 13, 2017 Read time: 2 mins
Clean diesel technology is the best choice for mitigating NOx emissions in the US as part of the Volkswagen Environmental Mitigation Trust, according to the non-profit education association Diesel Technology Forum.
 
In a presentation at the 2017 Energy Policy Outlook Conference hosted by the National Association of State Energy Officials (NASEO), Ezra Finkin, the policy director for the Forum, highlighted why clean diesel technology is the best and most cost-effective choice for the immediate mitigation of NOx emissions. He said replacing or upgrading the oldest and largest engines with clean diesel technology is the fastest and most proven way to reduce NOx emissions and achieve the objectives of the settlement.
 
The US$14.7 billion settlement reached between VW, the Attorney General and the Department of Justice includes the Environmental Mitigation Trust, designed to repower or replace older heavy-duty vehicles and equipment with new technology to reduce NOx emissions.  Public and private fleet vehicles are eligible for funding under the program.
 
According to Finkin, new clean diesel engines are near-zero in NOx emissions and are the most cost effective solution in reducing emissions to meet the specific goals established in the Trust.  “For a fixed investment, more NOx can be reduced through investments in clean diesel technology than any other alternative, including natural gas and all-electric applications,” he said.

He stated that, while not primary objectives of the settlement, policymakers should take into consideration these additional and immediate benefits from the clean diesel options.

Related Content

  • UK introduces grants for low-emission retrofit bus fleets
    September 29, 2017
    The UK government have set up a £30 million grant scheme for local authorities in England and Wales looking to fit bus fleets with an accredited and cost-effective retrofit program that enables emissions-reductions. The Clean Vehicle Retrofit Accreditation Scheme, developed by LowCVP and Energy Saving Trust, follows an evaluation report presented by LowCVP on findings from two public grant programmes that used retrofit technologies over a five-year period -- the clean Vehicle
  • VW presents electric mobility research
    April 23, 2012
    Volkswagen, in cooperation with six project partners and the German Ministry of the Environment, is presenting the current status of the ‘Fleet study in electric mobility’ that was initiated in July 2008. The primary goal of the project, which runs until June 2012, is to consistently utilise renewable energy sources for electrically powered vehicles. Within the framework of the fleet study, Volkswagen is using a total of 20 of the latest generation Golf Variant TwinDrive cars as research vehicles.
  • Mexico City seeks solutions to improve air quality
    December 6, 2017
    David Crawford ponders prospects for one of the world’s most congested and polluted cities. In 1992, the United Nations named Mexico City as the world’s most polluted urban centre. In the first half of 2016, following the updating of pollution alert limits to meet international standards, Mexico recorded 115 days where ozone concentrations exceeded the acute exposure health limit.
  • EIB and European Commission present Cleaner Transport Facility
    December 2, 2016
    At a recent TTE council meeting, the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the European Commission present the Cleaner Transport Facility (CTF) initiative, aimed at financing the decarbonisation of the transport sector in Europe. The support for alternative fuels and cleaner technology in transport is aligned with European Union policies on climate action and sustainable transport and specifically the recently-adopted strategy of the European Commission on low-emission mobility. The CTF is a new umbrella in