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 Berkeley,
California (Thursday, June 19, 2003)
– The City of Berkeley
will celebrate a milestone on June 24, 2003 at the City’s
Biodiesel Vehicle Exhibit recognizing Berkeley’s conversion to
100% Biodiesel diesel vehicles.
The conversion has been in place for the last six months and
is now planned for the long term.
To the best of its knowledge, Berkeley is the first city of
its size in the country to convert to 100% Biodiesel for virtually
an entire fleet.
The
Exhibit and a ceremony will be held from 6:30 until 7:00 p.m. at
Berkeley’s Old City Hall, located at 2134 Martin Luther King, Jr.
Way. The Exhibit will
feature a variety of 100% Biodiesel vehicles from the Departments of
Public Works, Parks, Fire, Police, and Health and Human Services,
and will include vehicle and Biodiesel experts.
“The
City of Berkeley has a long history of innovation and as a leader in
public policy,” said Weldon Rucker, City Manager of Berkeley.
“The use of Biodiesel fuel is yet another example.
By embracing this technology, the City of Berkeley will
provide a practical demonstration of the viability of this fuel
alternative.”
Biodiesel
is comprised of vegetable oil, usually soybean oil.
It has numerous advantages including less than half the
emissions produced by petroleum-based diesel, according to the U.S.
Environmental Projection Agency (EPA).
Biodiesel also can be derived from recycled vegetable
oil. It is far safer to
transport, store, and use because it is not a hazardous material
like petroleum products. Biodiesel
also reduces dependence on highly polluting oil, environmentally
destructive oil drilling, and wars and military interventions
involving the world oil market.
100%
Biodiesel, also called B100, is in use in over 180 of the City’s
diesel vehicles representing 90 percent of its fleet of 200 diesel
vehicles. The remaining
10 percent of diesel vehicles are Fire Department vehicles that will
be converted to 100% Biodiesel when accommodations are made for
delivering Biodiesel to the more remote Fire Stations throughout the
City.
As
a leader in environmental initiatives, Berkeley has already used
other cleaner fuels including all-electric, electric-gas hybrids,
compressed natural gas (CNG), and, formerly, 20% Biodiesel.
The Berkeley Ecology Center, which collects recyclables and
converted to 100% Biodiesel over a year ago, was an early advocate
for the City to convert from its 20% Biodiesel to the 100% level.
The City’s conversion to 100% Biodiesel was fully supported
by the Berkeley City Council and six citizen advisory commissions.
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