The Arizona Department of Environmental Quality has been awarded $200,000 by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to help fund low-emission school buses in Arizona.
The ADEQ will use the EPA funds to help school districts in the Phoenix area install diesel particulate filter (DPF) emission control devices on school buses. The filters can reduce harmful particulate emissions by about 85%, carbon monoxide by up to 90% & ozone precursors by more than 90%.
ADEQ will invite school districts to apply for grants this spring of up to $5,000 to cover the costs of the filters & the labor to install them. The funds will cover new filters for about 40 buses.
To receive the grant funds, schools must participate in ADEQ's voluntary School Bus Idling Program, under which school districts reduce diesel emissions by limiting bus idling near schools.