Colwood to gas up with bio-diesel Vancouver Island News Group Fri 09 Mar 2007 Section: Goldstream News Gazette - News
Municipality planning to convert truck fleet to soya oil fuel The City of Colwood is on the verge of switching to diesel fuel blended with industrial-grade soya oil. But not until its bureaucrats and engineers are convinced bio- diesel is a safe cost-effective alternative fuel that can replace air-polluting ordinary diesel used by the City's small fleet of trucks -- and won't affect vehicle warranties. Bio-diesel advocate Coun. Dave Saunders thinks it is safe on all counts and just as cheap as ordinary diesel. He said it won't be long, probably weeks, before the City follows other cities like Toronto and converts. Saunders said once the City switches to bio-diesel he expects the fire department and school district to also convert to what Columbia Fuels, Vancouver Island's main supplier of bio-diesel, says doesn't require any modifications to a vehicle's fuel system and will operate in almost any diesel engine without hurting performance. He said he uses bio-diesel to heat his home because it emits less pollutants into the atmosphere. Chris Pease, Colwood's chief administrator, said the City's engineers are looking at "all the ramifications" involved in switching to bio-diesel, the security of supply and which blend to use. Blends range from a five per cent blend (B5-bio-diesel) of soya to as high as 20 per cent. Columbia Fuels currently sells B5 commercially at its Cardlock station on Rockbay Avenue in Victoria. Peter Dunderdale, Columbia's bio-diesel marketing boss, says the firm sells about 50,000 litres of vehicle biodiesel monthly. It costs the same as regular diesel. Mixed at its 700,000 litre tank farm on Wilfert Road in Colwood, he said the alternative fuel only accounts for a fraction of total biodiesel sales in Greater Victoria and Vancouver Island. The company sells bio-diesel home-heating oil to 9,000 households that have converted from regular diesel. Dunderdale said bio-diesel is a cleaner burning fuel produced from renewable resources and is non-toxic. Victoria bus company Wilson Transportation is converting to bio- diesel, he said, because it spits out less carbon dioxide and only 13 parts per million sulfur into the atmosphere compared to 3,000 parts for regular diesel and 500 parts for the low-sulfur brand. Saunders said switching the City fleet to bio-diesel is an "environmentally responsible" move that will probably save his taxpayers cash because federal and provincial governments have gone green and are apt to reduce taxes on biodiesel compared to other fuels. Pease said Saanich, Victoria and Lower Mainland municipalities are experimenting with B10 bio-diesel. "Right now people are concerned with the environment and any little thing to reduce impact is the right thing to do," he added. [EMAIL PROTECTED] Copyright 2007 Goldstream News Gazette -- Darryl McMahon It's your planet. If you won't look after it, who will? The Emperor's New Hydrogen Economy (now in print and eBook) http://www.econogics.com/TENHE/ _______________________________________________ Biofuel mailing list Biofuel@sustainablelists.org http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives (50,000 messages): http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/
