RICHMOND, Va., July 15, 2010 – Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today visited a local company putting people to work and helping build a clean energy industry using a grant from the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act (Recovery Act). The visit was part of the Obama Administration's "Recovery Summer" events being held by the President and several members of the Cabinet across the country this week to highlight the surge in Recovery Act projects underway across the country this summer.
"The work happening here at Baker Equipment is a great example of the impact the Recovery Act dollars are having in cities and towns across the country, putting people to work and helping make rapid advances in emerging industries like clean energy," said Vilsack.
Baker Equipment's work converting cars to run on propane is part of the Virginia Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy's Paving the Way with Propane: The AutoGas Corridor Development Program, which received an $8.6 million Recovery Act grant to build the infrastructure to encourage public and private vehicle operators to convert existing vehicles from conventional gasoline to clean propane.
The grant is having an important impact on both job creation and clean energy efforts:
- The project has already resulted in 47 new jobs.
- The 1189 vehicles funded by this project will displace roughly 16 million gallons of gasoline.
- Refueling stations will be established to support those vehicles throughout the southeast - in Virginia, Maryland, Tennessee, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana
- Because propane produces significantly fewer CO and PM emissions than gasoline vehicles and reduces greenhouse gas emissions by 21 to 24 percent –over 16,000 tons of air pollution will be eliminated.
With project partners adding $10.4 million to the $8.6 million Recovery Act grant, the project also is an example of how the Recovery Act funds are leveraging private capital to launch cutting-edge projects. According to new analysis released Wednesday by the White House Council of Economic Advisers, the Recovery Act is not only having a significant job impact, but for every Recovery Act dollar invested in projects that leverage private capital, the private sector is putting in more than $2.50 – or at least 2.5 times as much. Thus, roughly $100 billion in Recovery Act funds – including investments in advanced vehicles - is leveraging over $350 billion in total public-private investment.
The Clean Cities program has received $300 million in Recovery Act funds, and is helping give state and local governments the tools they need to build a greener transportation system by funding a range of energy efficient and advanced vehicle technologies, such as hybrids, electric vehicles, plug-in electric hybrids, hydraulic hybrids and compressed natural gas vehicles, helping reduce petroleum consumption across the U.S.
