FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
March 10, 2021
COLUMBIA, SC – Each year, the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) receives a grant from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to fund the State of Carolina’s Diesel Emissions Reduction Act program. South (DERA). Diesel engines produce numerous pollutants that are harmful to human and environmental health, and DERA supports projects to reduce diesel emissions.
DERA funding is earmarked for counties, cities or other local government entities, private companies, non-profit organizations and colleges or universities for projects that use economical strategies to reduce diesel emissions through engine repeaters, equipment and retrofits exhaust or equipment replacements. DHEC can finance between 25% and 100% of the project costs, depending on the specific project.
“We are looking forward to partnering with a number of local organizations through these 2020 state DERA concessions,” said Rhonda Thompson, head of DHEC’s Air Quality Department. “For the past 12 years, DHEC has used grant funds from DERA to reduce air pollution produced by aging diesel engines and equipment, while supporting companies and local governments across South Carolina.”
For the 2020 State DERA program, DHEC awarded four scholarships:
- Haig Point Club & Community Association (Hilton Head Island, Beaufort County); awarded $ 139,308 to help repower a raft with new diesel engines
- Palmetto Propane, Fuels and Ice, Inc. (Batesburg, Lexington County); awarded $ 66,104 to help replace two diesel tank trucks with new trucks that will run on propane fuel
- Berkeley County School District (Moncks Corner, Berkeley County); awarded $ 40,534 to help replace a diesel dump truck
- Green Energy Biofuel (Winnsboro, Fairfield County); awarded $ 39,625 to help replace a diesel service truck and a diesel vacuum truck
To learn more about DERA grant opportunities and past projects funded by DERA grants in South Carolina, visit the DHEC DERA page.
DHEC expects to receive another EPA allocation for the 2021 State DERA program in the fall of 2021, when the agency will issue another request for project proposals. Contact Sam Christmus at [email protected] or 803-898-0717 for additional information on DERA scholarships in South Carolina.
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