Originally published August 28 2005
Atlanta school buses to be upgraded to lower emissions
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
The air will be a little cleaner in Atlanta soon, since Atlanta Public Schools will be spending $3.6 million to overhaul school buses to reduce emissions.
Atlanta Public Schools (APS) today announced it will benefit from a $3.6 million environmental fund arranged by Georgia-Pacific Corp., the Georgia Environmental Protection Division (EPD) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to reduce emissions from Atlanta's school buses.
In conjunction with the national Clean School Bus USA initiative, which aims to curb air pollution and reduce children's exposure to diesel exhaust, APS will evaluate and upgrade nearly 400 buses with air pollution control technology.
EPA's Clean School Bus USA goal is to upgrade 400,000 buses by 2010.
However, many school systems are limited in their ability to participate in the federal matching program due in part to equipment and ultra low sulfur diesel (USLD) fuel costs.
"Schools want to apply for the federal money but need partners from the business and not-for-profit community to raise matching funds," said Dr. Beverly L. Hall, Atlanta Public Schools Superintendent.
We hope our partnership with APS provides incentive to other school systems and encourages potential partners," added Bostic.
To increase awareness of EPD's metro Atlanta Clean School Bus USA effort, the Georgia-Pacific Foundation recently gave the Georgia Conservancy a $10,700 marketing grant.
The bus retrofit equipment includes crankcase ventilation systems, diesel particulate filters and oxidation catalysts, which oxidize pollutants into simple gases such as water vapor.
Studies have found that new diesel buses equipped with these technologies run cleaner than natural-gas fueled buses.
The school system remains focused on four key goals: improving student performance in reading/ English/language arts; improving student performance in math; increasing student enrollment in high-level courses; and increasing student attendance.
Headquartered at Atlanta, Georgia-Pacific is one of the world's leading manufacturers and marketers of tissue, packaging, paper, building products and related chemicals.
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