What is the purpose of Project Green Fleet?
Project Green Fleet is an effort to protect children’s health and reduce pollution by providing retrofits to Minnesota’s school buses and other diesel vehicles. Vehicles with diesel engines represent only 10% of the traffic on Minnesota roads, but contribute more than 50% of the air pollution generated by vehicles in the state. Concentrations of diesel exhaust can be much higher inside school buses and in areas where buses idle than in outdoor air generally. Retrofit technologies and idling reduction efforts reduce exposure to diesel exhaust in a cost-effective manner.

Who is leading Project Green Fleet?
The Minnesota Environmental Initiative’s (MEI) Clean Air Minnesota program established Project Green Fleet in 2005. School bus retrofits are a collaborative effort with partners that include the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA), Flint Hills Resources and Donaldson Company.

What is the project doing to reduce emissions?
Project Green Fleet helps school districts and other school bus operators reduce diesel emissions by installing pollution-control equipment on Minnesota school buses. The retrofits include diesel oxidation catalysts housed in a muffler and crankcase filtration systems. These are extremely cost-effective technologies that can reduce diesel exhaust by up to 50%. The retrofits are made by Donaldson Company in Minneapolis and use technologies verified by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). These are established, proven systems that are now required on all new diesel vehicles.

How MANY BUSES HAVE BEEN RETROFITTED?
Project Green Fleet has made possible the installation of retrofits on nearly 1,000 buses statewide, in cities such as Duluth, Bemidji, Rochester, Minneapolis and St. Paul. These retrofits have reduced emissions exposure for tens of thousands of school children. Project Green Fleet plans to complete the retrofitting of all eligible school buses in the state – a total of some 4,000 buses. In addition, Project Green Fleet has started pilot efforts providing retrofits to Head Start buses, transit buses, and municipal heavy-duty vehicles.

Which buses ARE ELIGIBLE FOR RETROFITS THROUGH PROJECT GREEN FLEET?
Project Green Fleet’s retrofits are available for older school buses (typically those built before 2004) that are likely to still have five or more years of expected operating life. These are buses that lack the emission controls found on newer buses. The project also considers other factors such as the number of passengers, miles traveled, and the willingness of an applicant to take other measures to reduce exposure to diesel exhaust, such as anti-idling efforts.

HOW CAN I PARTICIATE IN THE PROJECT?
School bus owners and operators, potential funders or other interested organizations sign up to receive more information on the program by filling out a contact form .

does participation require any immediate or long-term maintenance or costs?
Project Green Fleet provides all retrofit equipment and installation costs at no charge.
The diesel oxidation catalysts are maintenance free. The crankcase filtration systems require the filter to be replaced periodically. Project Green Fleet provides a year’s supply of filters for free. After that, the annual cost for filters is approximately $60, depending upon mileage and other operation factors.

Where can I find other retrofit information?
More information about retrofit equipment and projects is available at the following websites:
US EPA’s Clean School Bus USA program
MPCA’s diesel retrofit page

Does the retrofit equipment have any impact on vehicle performance?
According to the US EPA’s voluntary retrofit program, retrofit devices like oxidation catalysts have minimal impact on a diesel vehicle’s performance and fuel economy. More information is available at www.epa.gov/otaq/retrofit/retropotentialtech.htm

What is expected of participants?
A participation agreement between the fleet operator and the Minnesota Environmental Initiative (MEI) must be signed before funds are released to retrofit diesel vehicles. This is discussed in greater detail as part of the application process. Participants are also required to track retrofitted bus mileage and fuel usage and to provide other information to MEI that can quantify the associated emission and reduction exposure.