Council Takes Delivery of Bio-diesel
OXFORDSHIRE County Council has taken its first delivery of fuel based on vegetable oil.
The council?s Integrated Transport Unit took delivery of 7,000 litres of regular diesel mixed with 5% biodiesel for the 20 vehicles it runs out of its site in Headington, providing transport for people with mobility problems.
the council said that other council vehicles will continue to fill up with regular diesel until this trial has been evaluated.
Vehicle Fleet Engineer, Brian Webzell, said: “The move was the result of the council’s pledge to ensure 50% of its bulk vehicle fuel purchases are switched to a more environmentally sustainable biodiesel mix as part of its bid to reduce its carbon footprint.
“The pledge is one of twenty Oxfordshire County Council has made to Oxfordshire residents this year, and if the council continues to purchase the current mix at the current rate, the pledge will have been fulfilled by January next year.”
Brian continued that he hoped the proportion of biodiesel the council uses will increase in future years, but said that this depended on the results of this trial and manufacturers producing suitable vehicles.
He said: “We would like to use more biodiesel now, but at present vehicle manufacturers only support a 5% mix without it affecting the vehicle warranty.
As manufacturers increase the level of biodiesel allowed in their vehicles, it?s likely the County Council will follow suit. Some manufacturers already support an increased level of biodiesel mix but we must cater for the majority of our vehicles.
“The Council plans to be innovative in reducing its environmental footprint and will introduce wider uses of biodiesel mix, or other initiatives, as opportunities arise.”
Biodiesel, which is based on vegetable oil, is described as ?carbon neutral? because the carbon it releases into the atmosphere is offset by the amount the biofuel crop absorbed during growth in the recent past.
Mineral oil on the other hand comes from carbon stored millions of years ago.
There is no direct counterbalance to the carbon dioxide released in the process of extracting and burning. The result is increased carbon in the atmosphere, contributing, scientists believe, to global warming.