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In
This Issue: |
FYI Newsletter Volume 8, Issue 2, January 30, 2003
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E85 Continues to Expand in Utah
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E85 Purchasing Guide Now Available
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Promote
the Clean Alternative |
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E85
Infrastructure Grants to be Announced Soon
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2003 Annual NEVC Board and Membership Meeting
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Letters to the NEVC |
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E85
Continues to Expand in Utah |
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The first private E85 fueling station will soon open
in Utah! An existing 1,000 gallon tank is being converted to
dispense E85 on the Salt Lake Community College campus.
The clean fuel should be pumping within a month.
The project has been in the works for about a year and a
half. “The college has paid about $4,500 for this
project,” said Edward Benson, Fleet Maintenance Supervisor
for the Salt Lake City Community College.
“This will be the first alternative fuel we will have on
the campus,” commented Benson. Currently only diesel and
gasoline fuels are available. “Any county, city, state or
federal E85 vehicle will be able to fuel with the
product.”
A Grand Opening Event for this new site will be announced
soon.
Christensen Oil has drastically increased their sales of
E85 in Provo, Utah. The fueling station at
595 South 200 East in
Provo, Utah reports their sales have risen to about 1,000
gallons per week!
“After the
U.S.
postal vehicle fuel pumps were fixed around December
first, our sales increased quite a bit,” said Todd
Christensen, owner of the station. There are currently 57
postal vehicles in Provo fueling at Christensen Oil.
Christensen is selling E85 at the same price as his 85
octane gasoline at $1.47 per gallon. He is also in
discussions to sell the clean fuel to two other retailers
in Utah.
While the NEVC has certainly been engaged in the Utah
efforts, much credit for the expansion of the E85 program
in the area must be properly given to Beverly Miller, the
Salt Lake Clean Cities Coordinator. Beverly is a strong
and vocal advocate of all forms of alternative
transportation fuels and works tirelessly to encourage
state, federal, local, and private vehicle operators to
consider the use of any form of alternative fuel. The
NEVC would like to thank Beverly for her continuing
support and assistance! |
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E85 Purchasing Guide Now Available |
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The National Ethanol Vehicle Coalition has recently
completed a NEW 2003 E85 Purchasing Guide which is now
available online. An eighteen page electronic document
containing facts about E85, a listing and description of
the 2003 E85 alternative fuel vehicles, and E85 fueling
locations is now available at
http://www.e85fuel.com/information/purchasing_guide.htm.
This colorful, informative booklet can be printed off your
computer at no cost to you!
DOWNLOAD IT NOW! |
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Promote the Clean Alternative |
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 The
NEVC has E85 hats, t-shirts, bumper stickers, keychains
and more for sale at
http://www.e85fuel.com/nevc/promoitems.htm.
There is no easier way can you show that you support this
domestic fuel than sporting the E85 logo! You can
receive a special discount on promo items if you are a member
of the NEVC. Join the many who support the clean,
alternative fuel by becoming a member at
http://www.e85fuel.com/membership.htm. Help us
reduce our dependence on foreign oil. |
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E85 Infrastructure Grants to be Announced Soon |
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 Twenty-three
applications were recently received by the NEVC requesting funds to
establish new, public and/or
private E85 fueling stations. These proposed E85 sites combined total reached $1,528,653.93
in construction and equipment costs and NEVC requested
grant money totaled $1,488,062.07. To qualify for the grant, the applicants were to have at
least 33% of their proposed budget contributed.
These "matching funds" amounted to $822,461.15.
A review committee is currently evaluating these applications
to determine who is best qualified to receive portions of
NEVC’s $350,000 grant. Recipients are expected to be
announced
February 3, 2003.
Thank you to all who have put forth an effort to apply for
this grant and for your support of the clean, alternative
fuel. |
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2003 Annual NEVC Board and Membership Meeting |
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The National Ethanol Vehicle Coalition’s annual board and
membership meeting has been scheduled on February 25, 2003
from 1:00 – 5:00 p.m. in conjunction with the 2003
Commodity Classic in Charlotte, North Carolina. The
meeting will be held in the Johnson Room at the Hilton
Charlotte and Towers at 222 East Third Street. Please
contact Randa Barker by February 3 at
info@e85.com or at (573) 635-8445 if you plan
to attend. |
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Letters
to the NEVC |
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Letters to the NEVC -
This section highlights emails that the NEVC has recently
received. Many of the comments or suggestions that
we receive are of interest to a wider audience and we
would like to share them with our readers. |
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Converting to an FFV
This email was written to the NEVC Executive Director,
Phil Lampert.
Phil,
In an earlier correspondence, I
was advised that it was against the law to convert
vehicles over to use E85. Has anyone attempted to fight
this? There are I imagine many of us that would like the
opportunity to use E85 but can't afford buying a vehicle
specifically for E85.
Thanks,
Bryant Sims
. . .
Bryant,
Wow, that's a tough question, but
a good one at that.......I'm sending a copy of your email
to the Ann Arbor Testing Laboratory of the U.S. EPA.
Thank you,
Phil Lampert
. . .
Phil/Bryant,
Vehicles can be converted to run on E85 if the conversion
is done by a converter who has been certified by the EPA.
Unfortunately, certification is an expensive and
time-consuming task, so few companies have done it. EPA
regulations were recently changed to have more control
over vehicle conversions. While this may make things more
difficult for the consumer, it guarantees higher quality
conversions which meet all applicable emission standards.
We are trying to avoid problems of the early 80s, when
many vehicles were converted to run on cleaner fuels, but
the conversion was not done properly and the vehicles
actually ran poorly and cause more pollution.
For more information on certified vehicle converters, see
the "Alternative Fuels Conversions" link on the EPA web
page:
www.epa.gov/otaq/cert.htm.
Please note that while vehicle conversion may be a
difficult option, there are more E85 flex-fuel vehicles
available from the major manufacturers than for any other
alternative fuel. And these vehicles rarely cost more
than the gasoline version of the same vehicle. If you are
interested in a sedan, van, SUV or pick-up, there are
several E85 FFV models available. The original engine
manufacturers have been making FFVs for a number years
now, and so these vehicles are also available in the used
car market. Consider this when you make your next vehicle
purchase, and be sure to let your dealer know that you are
interested in ethanol.
I hope this information helps to clarify the AFV
conversion question.
Thank you,
Deborah Adler
EPA Alternative Fuels Coordinator
What Will Happen If. . .
This email was written to NEVC Director of Communications,
Michelle Saab.
I was wondering if you could help me with a question. This
morning I mistakenly put in E-85 in my 2000 Buick Regal, 8
gallons. The clerk told me to add as much regular fuel as
I could, and that was only 4.5 gallons. What are the
consequences to the car? Will this ruin the engine?
Thank you for any help you can offer.
Heather
. . .
Heather,
Although your vehicle was not manufactured to run on E85,
no problems should occur if you inadvertently add a small
amount of alternative fuel such as E85. The largest
difference between an E85 powered vehicle and a gasoline
powered vehicle is that the computer within each
vehicle is meant to read different amounts of oxygen
within the fuel. E85 contains a higher amount of oxygen
than gasoline and E85 compatible vehicles are made to read
that higher amount. When a higher amount of oxygen
is read by a gasoline powered vehicle, your "check engine
light" may come on. However, in our experience with this
matter, your vehicle should operate just as it will with
gasoline. Actually, there are many people that have
contacted the NEVC and said that they have consistently
run E85 in their gasoline powered only vehicle and that it
runs even BETTER than it does with gasoline. We do not
advocate or condone the use of E85 in a gasoline only
vehicle, but simply give an account of reports that have
been received.
Thank you,
Michelle Saab
Thanks for the emails to the NEVC! Feel free to
email us with your comments at anytime.
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February 6, 2003
Ethanol In
California:
Opportunities for Increased Utilization and Production
Workshop at the Radisson Hotel in Sacramento, California.
Visit
www.cleanfuelsdc.org or
www.ethanol.org/caconference.htm to register. Hotel
accommodations can be made through the Sacramento Radisson
by calling
(916) 922-7353.
February 17-19, 2003
8th Annual National Ethanol Conference: Policy
and Marketing at the Camelback Inn Marriott Resort in
Scottsdale, AZ. For more information, call BBI
International at (800) 567-6411.
February 18-20, 2003
Western
Petroleum Marketers Association Annual meeting and trade
show for February 18- 20, Las Vegas, NV.
For more information, visit
www.wpma.com.
February
25, 2003
2003 Annual NEVC Board and Membership Meeting in
Charlotte, NC. For more information, visit
http://www.e85fuel.com/news/board_mtg_invite.pdf or
email
info@e85.com.
February 27 – March 1, 2003
2003 Commodity Classic at the Charlotte Convention Center
in Charlotte, NC. For more information, visit
www.commodityclassic.com.
February 28 – March 3, 2003
The National Farmer’s Union 101st anniversary
convention in Anaheim, CA. For more information,
visit
http://www.nfu.org/.
May 4-7, 2003
25th Symposium on Biotechnology for Fuels and
Chemicals in Breckenridge, Colorado. For more
information, visit
http://www.nrel.gov/biotech_symposium/
May 18-21, 2003
9th
National Clean Cities Conference and Exposition in
Palm Springs, CA. For more information, call (303)
275-4317.
June
11-13, 2003
EPAC’s 13th Annual Ethanol Conference in Big
Sky, MT. For more information, email
shirley@ethanolmt.org.
June
16-19, 2003
BBI International’s International Fuel Ethanol Workshop
and Trade Show at the Sioux Falls Convention Center in
Sioux Falls, SD. For more information, visit
www.bbiethanol.com or email
conferences@bbiethanol.com.
July 30
– August 1, 2003
American Coalition for Ethanol’s Annual Meeting & Ethanol
Conference at the Sioux Falls Convention Center in Sioux
Falls, SD. For more information, visit
www.ethanol.org/conference.htm or email
wsburen@ethanol.org.
August 17-24, 2003
Energy 2003 Workshop and Exposition in Orlando, FL.
Sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy, Federal Energy
Management Program and co-sponsored by the U.S. Department
of Defense and the U.S. General Services Administration.
Visit
www.energy2003.ee.doe.gov or call 1-800-395-8574 for
more information.
September 21-23,2003
The
US Refining and Automotive Industries 2003 and Beyond -
Coming Together of Energy, Environmental & Economic Issues
in Washington, DC at the Hyatt Regency on Capitol Hill.
For more information, visit
call 1-800-872-3835.
CONTACT US. . .
Please feel free to e-mail your story suggestions,
comments, corrections or clarifications to us at
info@e85fuel.com or
call us toll free at 877-485-8595.
Phillip J. Lampert, Executive Director
info@e85.com
Michelle Saab, Director of Communications
info@e85.com
Randa Barker, Director of Administration
info@e85.com
You may view this FYI online at
http://www.e85fuel.com/news/index.htm
NEVC promotes the use of 85
percent ethanol as a renewable form of alternative
transportation fuel while enhancing agricultural
profitability, advancing environmental stewardship and
promoting national energy independence. |
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