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| Backgrounder(s) & FactSheet(s): | Backgrounder |
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| Backgrounder(s) & FactSheet(s): | Backgrounder |
VICTORIA
– The Province will provide $10.6
million in funding to enable school districts around the province to purchase
new clean-energy school buses, Education Minister Shirley Bond announced today.
“One of our government’s priorities is to
ensure schools and school vehicles are as environmentally friendly as
possible,” said Bond. “This funding will enable school districts to buy
state-of-the-art clean-energy diesel buses. At the same time, we’ll be testing
four hybrid diesel-electric school buses, some of the first in North America.”
In
total, the funding will allow districts to purchase over 80 new buses and in
some cases enhance their fleets to include propane and hydrogen injection systems.
The
cleaner burning new diesel buses will reduce exhaust particulate emissions by
90 per cent compared to the previous 1994 standard. Particulate emissions are a
major source of air pollution.
“Hospital
visits as a result of poor air quality cost our B.C. health-care system an
estimated $85 million a year,” said Environment Minister Barry Penner. “Our
government is supporting a number of key actions to ensure British Columbia has
the best air quality.”
Three
districts, Howe Sound, the Gulf Islands and Saanich, are currently piloting
biodiesel in their new clean diesel buses. The Central Okanagan school district
is taking delivery of a diesel-electric hybrid bus that is the first
charge-sustaining school bus sold in North America.
All
existing diesel buses are also being retrofitted with new clean diesel
technology as part of an aggressive strategy to improve air quality for
students and the communities they live in.
“We are proud to be the first government in North America to require all
public sector organizations to publicly report on their emissions levels, on
the actions they have taken to reduce these levels, and their plans for
continuing to minimize emissions,” said Bond. “Through the new Greenhouse Gas Reduction Targets Act, the government will lead by example, first by reducing our emissions as much
as possible and then offsetting the remainder.”
The clean-energy bus
initiative supports the Province’s clean air and climate
change objectives.
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contact: |
Ministry of Education 250 356-5963 250 920-9040 (cell) |
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For more information on government services or to subscribe to the Province’s news feeds using RSS, visit the Province’s website at www.gov.bc.ca. |
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