USA, California
$7.7 million available to aid construction
California is seeking experienced and qualified teams to compete for part of $7.7 million aimed at helping construct and improve hydrogen-fueling stations in the Los Angeles and San Francisco areas. The Air Resources Board is dispensing the funds to advance Governor Schwarzenegger’s Hydrogen Highway initiative that is promoting the creation of a hydrogen refueling network. The state is pursuing a transition to clean energy and energy diversity by promoting automobile manufacturers’ and energy companies’ efforts to employ hydrogen as a power source for vehicles and electricity production.
"We are shifting California’s economy to clean energy and hydrogen
plays an important role," said Air Resources Board Chairman Mary
Nichols. "We have burgeoning technologies that use hydrogen to power
vehicles and in the future could provide electricity for homes. The
increased use of hydrogen in the transportation sector would diversify
California’s energy sources and reduce harmful smog-forming and
climate-changing emissions."
The new funding follows Air Resources Board’s recent amendments to the
Zero Emission Vehicle program, which forces auto manufacturers to place
7,500 zero emission vehicles on the road by 2014. Some of these will be
fuel cell vehicles dependent on readily available sources of hydrogen.
Hydrogen can provide energy with minimal-to-zero pollution. When
produced from a clean renewable source – such as water, wind, sun,
biomass or biogas – and used in fuel cells, hydrogen use has extremely
small impacts on the environment. Compared to today’s average
gasoline-powered vehicle, hydrogen fuel cell vehicles produce 50
percent less greenhouse gases and 40-90 percent less smog-forming and
toxic emissions, even when powered by hydrogen produced from natural
gas, currently the most common method.
There are 24 hydrogen stations operating in California, with more
planned and there are roughly 209 hydrogen-powered vehicles operating
throughout the state.
The application deadline for funds is June 13, 2008. For more
information and guidelines for applying go here and in the agency
option select Air Resources Board:
http://www.cscr.dgs.ca.gov/cscr/contract_ads/display/contract_ad_search.asp.
The Air Resources Board is a department of the California Environmental
Protection Agency. ARB’s mission is to promote and protect public
health, welfare, and ecological resources through effective reduction
of air pollutants while recognizing and considering effects on the
economy. The ARB oversees all air pollution control efforts in
California to attain and maintain health based air quality standards.
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