Senior Environment and Policy major Sarah Ferriter wants to make the air cleaner around campus before she graduates next December. She is asking USM students to approve an additional fee of $1.00 per student to establish the USM Sustainability Fund. The fund will primarily pay for the extra costs of running USM busses on a fuel made from a mix of standard diesel fuel and a renewable, plant-derived biodiesel fuel called B20.
Approximately 7,500 USM students commute to school and hundreds more ride the shuttle buses between the Portland and Gorham campuses.
“I was riding the shuttle to Gorham and I was having trouble breathing,” says Ferriter. “The split campus is just not a sustainable system.” Currently the shuttle buses, which are contracted from VIP Tour and Coach, run on standard fossil fuel called petroleum diesel. According to the US Environmental Protection Agency, petroleum diesel emissions contribute to smog, acid rain, lung damage, respiratory problems and premature death.
VIP general manager Ray Penfold acknowledges the EPA’s findings, but points out that his company has recently adopted more environmentally sound technologies. They have purchased low sulfur petroleum diesel from Irving and use new buses with EPA approved diesel engines, which he says have cut down on the smell and stains associated with the older diesel engines. “I am uneducated but interested in alternative fuel technologies,” says Penfold. “But what do professors know about buses? Some ideas are just not appropriate.”
According to the proposal Ferriter presented to the Executive Board of the Student Senate, money from the USM Sustainability Fund would cover the added cost of purchasing B20 fuel from Frontier Energy in South China, Maine. This fuel mixture is 80 percent petroleum diesel and 20 percent biodiesel (thus the name, B20).
Biodiesel is produced when glycerin is separated from fats and vegetable oils. The plant-derived fuel is clean burning, renewable and non-toxic. Biodiesel in its purest form, B100, turns into a solid at 32 degrees Fahrenheit and cannot be used in cold weather. According to Ferriter, VIP is not doing enough to lower diesel emissions by simply using low sulfur petroleum diesel. “Removing energy from diesel is extremely energy intensive. As a result of intensive refining, even ultra-low-sulfur petroleum diesel is still more polluting and less efficient than gasoline,” said Ferriter.
Penfold is worried about the extra costs associated with B20. He claims that the process of mixing petroleum and bio diesels with air (known as irrigation) is costly and time consuming. Ferriter said that this process will be done by Frontier Energy and is included in the cost of purchasing the fuel. On average, B20 costs 30 cents more per gallon than regular diesel.
There will be an open hearing on Mar. 10 at 2:30 p.m. in the Woodbury Campus Center to discuss the proposed biodiesel initiative. Speakers include Fred Dillon, a representative from the Biodiesel Campaign, John Wathan, regional director of ME Department of Environmental Protection, and Steve Linnell of the Greater Portland Council of Governments and Maine Clean Communities.
Because of recent budget cuts at the university, Ferriter is asking for student money in addition to the support she is receiving from the National Wildlife Federation and EnviroCitizen to contribute to ongoing sustainability issues at the university. Amanda Smith, vice chair of the Student Senate and chair of the Executive Board, is supporting Ferriter’s project.
“Sarah has brought up a great following of support around campus. It is always wonderful to see [student] leaders on campus with such passion,” she said.
After the Executive Board presents their finding on the proposal to the Student Senate, undergraduate students may see a question about the $1.00 annual fee to support the USM Sustainability Fund on a March Referendum.
Portland public schools are currently looking into B20 as well. The fuel mixture has been a success in other school districts throughout the US, Ferriter said. She hopes that if USM successfully uses B20 in its buses, the rest of Maine will follow suit. “The Portland area is a critical mass, economically.”
Kate Brown can be contacted at [email protected]