New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has made it official, signing a bill that will require all diesel heating oil in the city contain at least 2 percent biodiesel:

“The final bill before me today is Introductory Number 194-A … [which] will significantly reduce pollution, promote the use of alternative fuels, create new ‘green’ jobs and vastly improve air quality throughout the City.

“Promoting the use of cleaner burning heating fuels is one of fourteen air quality initiatives from PlaNYC 2030 and I am pleased to say that the legislation before me today will do just that. Introductory Number 194-A requires that by 2012, the sulfur content of Number 4 heating oils be limited to no more than 1,500 parts per million and all heating oils used in New York City contain at least two percent biodiesel.”

The move won the praise of the National Biodiesel Board and local biodiesel makers and marketers, Sprague Energy and METRO Terminals:

“New York City is already the nation’s largest municipal user of biodiesel. We applaud the Mayor and City Council for building on that legacy by adopting a universal biodiesel requirement that will further improve air quality in the city,” said Shelby Neal, NBB’s director of state governmental affairs. “I would especially like to thank Councilman Gennaro, who has been a tireless advocate for this and other important environmental issues. His vision for a cleaner burning, green, and sustainable heating fuel is being realized.”

“As one of New York’s original biodiesel and Bioheat suppliers, we know firsthand what a positive impact the fuels have on the lives of New Yorkers,” said Steven J. Levy, managing director of Sprague Energy. “This landmark legislation is another huge step in reducing air pollution in the city, yet just another building block in cleaning the air we breathe for healthier, longer lives.”

“More than 70 years ago, my grandmother started a heating oil business here because she thought coal represented the past,” said Paul Pullo, who owns METRO Terminals along with his brother, Gene. “With biodiesel, America’s only commercially available advanced biofuel, we will take our business into the next generation again.”