Biodiesel Trailblazing Across Indiana
Originally published by the National Biodiesel Board
Trailblazing is nothing new for the City of Fort Wayne, Indiana’s award-winning fleet division. A long-time user of biodiesel, the city has furthered its commitment to carbon reduction with the cleaner-burning fuel by helping to launch the B20 Club of Indiana, as an inaugural member.
By using biodiesel, Fort Wayne is shrinking its carbon footprint in a measurable way and it hasn’t gone unnoticed. In 2020, the city used nearly 270,000 gallons of B20 (a blend of 20% biodiesel and 80% petroleum diesel), reducing 514 tons of carbon emissions and 90 pounds of particulate matter, resulting in an estimated $29,000 annual health benefit. That’s the annual carbon reduction equivalent of planting 7,715 trees. The city has earned a number of awards for its achievements. Most recently, 100 Best Fleets in the Americas ranked Fort Wayne #38 out of more than 38,000 public fleets in 2021.
“The City of Fort Wayne has been using a B20 blend to power our fleet for nearly two decades,” said Larry Campbell, fleet director for Fort Wayne. “We are proud to fuel our vehicles with a product that’s produced locally and burns significantly cleaner than petroleum diesel. On top of that, biodiesel is by far the best carbon reduction tool of any liquid fuel available today. B20 is the easiest thing we can do to reduce emissions. It makes it a no-brainer for me as a fleet director ”
More than 267,000 residents call the northeastern Indiana city of Fort Wayne home. With its three converging rivers — the St. Marys, St. Joseph and Maumee — Fort Wayne takes outdoor recreation and clean air seriously. That is why the city fuels with B20 to achieve cleaner air and a better environment for residents. B20 powers essential city services, including transportation systems, emergency response, water and sewer, leaf collection, street sweeping and snow and ice control – some 300 vehicles in total.
Fort Wayne has used B20 since 2004 to help meet its emissions reduction goals with a readily available fuel.
Campbell and his team are eager to share the city’s biodiesel story with the public and other fleets. As part of that effort, they stickered 500 diesel vehicles and equipment with biodiesel branding in 2020 through the National Biodiesel Board’s matching funds program. Joining other fleets in the B20 Club is another way they share biodiesel’s important sustainability benefits with the public.
The Indiana Soybean Alliance and the American Lung Association launched the B20 Club of Indiana in 2021. Their collaboration recognizes and supports select Indiana-based fleets running on biodiesel blends of B20 or higher.
“With carbon footprint top-of-mind for many communities, look to B20 Club of Indiana member fleets to lead the way,” said Bailey Arnold, senior manager of Clean Air Initiatives for the American Lung Association. “Fueling with cleaner-burning B20 or higher biodiesel blends helps these fleets reduce greenhouse gas emissions and improve air quality – while producing efficient and reliable engine performance in a variety of fleet vehicles.”
