Vehicle Fuel Awareness Month

This month Utah Clean Cities, members, stakeholders and clean air advocates helped launch the 8th annual Governor’s Declaration for Alternative Fuels Awareness month.  The well-crafted declaration encourages individuals and businesses to adopt cleaner transportation with low and zero emissions. With locally sourced, cleaner alternative fuels which Utah has in abundance: natural gas, propane and electric, Utah is positioned to continue to lead the nation with alternative fuels.   

Our air quality demands more than national positioning and state leadership, it demands thoughtful and active participation with our policy-makers and our citizenry.  We all make choices everyday and now is the time to choose better transportation and alternative fuels and vehicles are crucial to air quality

 

With the expansion of the Alternative Fuel Corridor, Utah’s continued development and expansion of fueling infrastructure is essential.  We have the largest natural gas fueling infrastructure per capita in the nation and propane is gaining it’ place in vehicles in the commercial, carrier (school buses & shuttles) and equipment.  Expansion of electric charging at home, work and in public, will be the next giant step toward zero emissions transportation.  Our progressive cities, universities, National Parks & Monuments and businesses have begun to add green parking and EV Charging.  Their efforts support their own fleets and encourage the use of EV’s for employee passenger cars.  80% of charging happens at home and at work.  With the addition of solar to homes and businesses, transportation can be truly net zero emissions using another abundant resource in Utah, our solar energy.

The declaration further encourages Utahans to take advantage of state and federal tax incentives for vehicle purchases for business fleets and private use.  The incentives have proven to encourage analysis financially and in almost every case, the short and long term benefits are clear and sound.  The important tax incentives add more than good business modeling and sound personal decisions; it directly supports cleaner emissions and hence cleans up our air.  And the high value of clean air, just like clean water, needs the emission reduction model outlined in the governor’s declaration.