Schools in Ohio are being urged to apply for grants to fund using soy biodiesel in buses.
This story from the Chilicothe (OH) Gazette says 21 school districts are already taking advantage of the program designed to help kids breathe easier:
“It is great to see schools take advantage of this program that requires no additional costs but provides a tremendous amount of benefits to school children, and I am hopeful that even more school districts apply during the second round of funding,” said Dan Corcoran, chairman of the council and a soybean farmer in Pike County.
The state, according to the council, has an additional $250,000 in grant funding available to fund the use of soy biodiesel in state school buses. The program was included in Gov. Ted Strickland’s biennium budget as the result of work done by the council and the Ohio Farm Bureau.
The program, which is administered by the Ohio Department of Development and is promoted through the council’s Clean Air for Kids program, provides grants to cover any cost difference between regular petroleum diesel that most districts now use and a B20 biodiesel, which is a blend of 20 percent biodiesel with 80 percent of the traditional diesel fuel.
You can find out more about the program by going to www.soybiodiesel.org/kids.