Press Contact: Sophie Cardona: (212) 361-2400, ext. 244 , or email cardona@informinc.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, November 6, 2002

STUDY FINDS THAT THE HIGH-POLLUTING GARBAGE TRUCK SECTOR IS SLOWLY BUT SUCCESSFULLY SHIFTING FROM DIESEL TO CLEANER NATURAL GAS

Cites Fleet Operators in 25 US Cities That Are Leading The Transition And Calls On Government Officials To Provide Incentives To Speed Up Effort To Safeguard Public Health

New York, NY – November 6, 2002 – INFORM, Inc., the national environmental research organization, today released the first comprehensive study of the nation’s estimated 179,000 garbage trucks. Much of this fleet, one of the oldest and most polluting in the nation, is operated by local government agencies or is under contract to those agencies.

The study – Greening Garbage Trucks: New Technologies for Cleaner Air – reveals that, while more than 90 percent of garbage trucks are powered by traditional diesel engines, a slow but successful shift is taking place as fleet operators in 25 US cities (see attached list) move from diesel to cleaner natural gas. The study calls on government officials at all levels to provide incentives to speed up the transition and thereby safeguard the public’s health.

The study found that garbage trucks are among the oldest, least fuel-efficient, and most polluting fleet vehicles in the United States:

• There are more than twice as many garbage trucks in the US (179,000) as there are urban transit buses (82,600). The garbage truck fleet includes refuse and recycling collection vehicles as well as transfer trucks.
• Forty-one percent of garbage trucks in use are more than 10 years old, nearing the end of their lifetime (12 to14 years), and performing at reduced efficiencies.
• Garbage trucks use more fuel than any other type of vehicle – averaging 8,600 gallons per year – except for tractor-trailers and transit buses (which use 11,500 gallons and 10,800 gallons on average per year, respectively).
• Garbage trucks in the US consume approximately 1 billion gallons of diesel fuel annually and get the lowest fuel efficiency (2.8 miles per gallon) of any vehicle type. Transit buses, single-unit heavy-duty trucks, and tractor-trailers get 2.9, 7.0, and 6.1 miles per gallon, respectively.
• Diesel garbage trucks are a major source of air pollution, including smog-forming compounds, particulate matter, and toxic chemical constituents. While heavy-duty diesel-powered vehicles, including garbage trucks, make up only 7 percent of vehicles on the road, they contribute 69 percent of on-road fine particulate pollution and 40 percent of nitrogen oxide emissions.
• Diesel garbage trucks are notoriously loud, generating noise levels of up to 100 decibels, which can cause serious hearing damage. Garbage truck operators, as well as those living along garbage truck routes, are affected by this noise.

The study found that, while some testing of hybrid electric technology and alternative fuels is under way in the garbage truck sector, almost all innovation in the development of alternative-fuel garbage trucks involves the use of natural gas. It also found that – for a variety of reasons including, among others, environmental regulations and court orders, competitive advantages, and environmental leadership – 26 waste collection agencies in 25 US cities have begun to shift from diesel to natural gas, with nearly 700 natural gas trucks in operation today. Much of this shift is taking place in California, where regulations and incentives are driving the market.

The study includes in-depth profiles of 17 of these 26 garbage truck fleets, as well as basic information on the other 9 US fleets. Also included in INFORM’s profiles are fleets in Japan and in the Netherlands, whose initiatives suggest the parallel shift to natural gas trucks that is beginning around the world.

The study found that:

• Garbage trucks capable of burning either compressed natural gas (CNG) or liquefied natural gas (LNG) are fully commercial choices.
• The first use of natural gas trucks was pioneered in 1989 by the New York City Department of Sanitation, which currently operates 36 CNG trucks.
• Waste Management, Inc., is the clear US industry leader in the use of natural gas trucks, currently operating a total of 380 natural gas garbage trucks in 14 fleets.
• Of the 26 garbage truck fleets using natural gas vehicles, 10 are operated by public agencies and 16 by private companies that operate under contract to the municipal government of the area they service.
• Of the 692 natural gas trucks studied, 69 percent were powered by LNG and 31 percent by CNG.
• Existing natural gas garbage trucks account for far less than 1 percent of the approximately 179,000 trucks in operation today. If all the companies that are currently planning to implement natural gas garbage truck projects do so, the number of natural gas trucks would increase to over 2,200 trucks, or 1.2 percent of the US fleet, by 2010.
• Existing natural gas garbage trucks in the US displace nearly 6 million gallons of diesel (equivalent to 143,000 barrels of oil) annually. By 2010, the currently planned US natural gas garbage truck fleet is expected to displace nearly 20 million gallons of diesel fuel (476,000 barrels of oil) each year.
• There is strong original equipment manufacturer (OEM) support for the natural gas garbage truck industry. Most major truck and heavy-duty engine manufacturers offer natural gas models for garbage truck applications.
• In addition to natural gas utilities, new companies are emerging to compete for business in installing refueling facilities and delivering natural gas fuel.

Garbage trucks that burn CNG or LNG are achieving impressive emissions reductions, as shown in the following table.

Summary of Reported Quantified Benefits
of Natural Gas vs. Conventional Diesel-fueled Garbage Trucks

“This study demonstrates that natural gas represents a commercially available, operationally efficient, and environmentally preferable alternative to the diesel-fueled garbage trucks that are polluting our air and perpetuating our dependence on foreign oil,” said Juliet Burdelski, Director of Urban Outreach for the Sustainable Transportation Program at INFORM.

“Refuse collection is a vital public service in which municipal governments throughout the country are directly or indirectly involved,” added Joanna Underwood, the founder of INFORM. “Governments at all levels must provide significant financial incentives if this industry is to be transformed from one of the most polluting to one that is environmentally sound and poses the smallest threat possible to public health.”

The study includes a series of specific recommendations, outlining steps that should be taken by governments, waste collection agencies, and others to speed the transition of garbage trucks from diesel fuels to natural gas or other alternative fuels.

Contributors to the study include Deborah Gordon, Juliet Burdelski, and James S. Cannon. For more information and for printed copies, please contact INFORM, 212-361-2400 x 240. To order electronic copies, click here.

INFORM is an independent research organization that examines and reports on innovative business practices and technologies that can ensure environmentally sustainable economic growth. INFORM’s research is used by government, industry, and environmental leaders around the world. Reports from INFORM’s Sustainable Transportation Program include Bus Futures: New Technologies for Cleaner Cities; China at the Crossroads: Energy, Transportation and the 21st Century; and Gearing Up for Hydrogen: America’s Road to Sustainable Transportation.