Governor Rendell Says PA Seeking Additional Recovery Funds To Upgrade Diesel Engine...

Governor Rendell Says PA Seeking Additional Recovery Funds To Upgrade Diesel
Engine Technology, Keep Employees Working

HARRISBURG, Pa., April 29 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Governor Edward G.
Rendell announced today that the commonwealth has applied for more than $11
million in grants through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA)
for three innovative projects that will invest in businesses, keep
Pennsylvanians working, and improve the state's air quality.

"These projects are important to the communities they will serve, to the
commonwealth's economy and its environment," said Governor Rendell. "Every
day, there are hundreds of thousands of diesel engines that are used in
Pennsylvania and, because many of those engines are old and inefficient,
companies have considered shuttering them because they were simply too
expensive to use. If companies had done that, the jobs that depend on those
engines likely would have been gone.

"These projects offer a boost to our economy by ensuring that workers stay on
the job operating or installing new equipment that will make the projects and
operations viable and the companies more competitive.

"At the same time, many inefficient engines generate large amounts of air
pollutants and fine particles that can adversely affect the health of our
people and make it difficult for many to breathe," said the Governor. "These
three projects could help reduce those emissions and, in turn, improve the
quality of life and health of our citizens."

The competitive grant applications are part of the $16 million that is
available to the Mid-Atlantic region for the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency's National Clean Diesel Campaign. The ARRA made $156 million available
for the campaign, which promotes projects that reduce emissions from diesel
engines.

The Department of Environmental Protection is seeking the grant funding for
the following three projects:

-- Buffalo & Pittsburgh Railroad Inc. is requesting $1.6 million to
upgrade two high-emission diesel-electric switching engines at its
Brookville, Jefferson County, repair facility that are more than 40
years old. Modifying these obsolete and low-tech engines will retain
four workers who would have otherwise been furloughed;
-- Norfolk Southern is requesting $7.5 million to re-power 10 locomotive
engines that date back to before 1973 with larger, advanced technology
engines that will be up to 38 percent more fuel efficient. The
re-powered locomotives will be used for local or switcher duty
throughout the state. The project would allow the company to continue
employing the equivalent of 18 employees working 40 hours per week per
year at its Juniata Locomotive Shop; and

-- The Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission is seeking $2 million to supply
electricity to 123 parking spaces at five turnpike travel plazas in
Cumberland, Lehigh, Montgomery and Somerset counties. By equipping the
spaces with electricity, long-haul truck drivers with heavy duty
diesel
engines will be able to power their cabs without idling their engines
during mandated rest periods. The projects would create an estimated
eight jobs for the installation of the equipment.

Securing support for these projects would be the latest in a series of actions
taken by Governor Rendell to reduce diesel emissions. Last October, he signed
the Diesel-Powered Motor Vehicle Idling Act, which restricts heavy-duty diesel
vehicles from idling more than five minutes per hour. The commonwealth has
also invested nearly $1 million to electrify truck stops to allow drivers to
turn off their engines, reducing emissions and fuel consumption.

"The service plaza changeover alone has the potential to save truckers nearly
half a million gallons of fuel annually," said Governor Rendell. "In addition
to the fuel savings and reduced emissions, this reduces the amount of money
going to overseas producers of oil and keeps dollars at work right here in
Pennsylvania."

To learn more about how the federal economic stimulus will benefit
Pennsylvania, visit www.recovery.pa.gov.

The Rendell administration is committed to creating a first-rate public
education system, protecting our most vulnerable citizens and continuing
economic investment to support our communities and businesses.To find out more
about Governor Rendell's initiatives and to sign up for his weekly newsletter,
visit www.governor.state.pa.us.

CONTACT:
Barry Ciccocioppo
717-783-1116

John Repetz (DEP)
717-787-1323

SOURCE Pennsylvania Office of the Governor

Barry Ciccocioppo of the Pennsylvania Office of the Governor, +1-717-783-1116;
or John Repetz of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection,
+1-717-787-1323