Five New National Partners Enter the Clean Cities Hall of Fame

Five New National Par tners

Enter the Clean Cities Hall of Fame

Once a year the Clean Cities Program inducts "National Partners" into its Hall of

Fame. The prestigious National Partner Awards are given to praise the outstanding

alternative fuel and vehicle contributions made by companies, cities, and states.

Brian Castelli, DOE's Chief of Staff for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy,

Hall of

presented the awards honoring those Clean Cities Partners that stepped up to build

new alternative fuel markets using the Clean Cities Partnership approach to help

Fame

create a legacy for the alternative fuel vehicle industry. Here are this year 's winners:

General Motors for efforts in the alternative vehicle markets: EV1, S10 pickup, bifuel

CNG Chevy Cavalier, bifuel CNG pickup. Also for re-entering the CNG market and for

sponsoring the Ethanol Vehicle Challenge.

Governors' Ethanol Coalition for supporting expansion of ethanol (E85) refueling infrastructure.

American Honda for the Mr. Clean advertisements, and the first mass-produced dedicated AFV with 200260 mile

range, 1/10th the emission levels of the Ultra-Low-Emission Vehicle standard, no evaporative emissions, and superior

fuel economy--the CNG Civic GX.

New York City Clean Taxi Program for putting 600 CNG taxis on the streets of New York by the year 2000.

State of California for 12 Clean Cities Coalitions, the California Energy Commission's leadership, the Department of

General Services' efforts in promoting electric vehicles, CNG, and M85, the Sacramento EV Pilot Project, and the air

district's support of the local Clean Cities Coalitions.

Meetings on the Hill

On Tuesday, conference participants loaded onto CNG buses (provided

by Deere Power Systems/BlueBird, Virginia Power/Advanced Vehicle

Systems, Inc., and Montgomery County, Maryland) and cruised through

downtown Washington, D.C., toward Capitol Hill. Once seated in the

auditorium of the Dirksen Senate Office Building, we heard from

Congressman Boehlert (left) and Senator Dodd

Congressman Sherwood Boehlert (R-NY), Senator Christopher Dodd (D-CT),

(right) address the audience during a session

National Renewable Energy Laboratory's (NREL's) Director Admiral

at the Dirksen Senate Office Building.

Richard Truly, and Brian Castelli, DOE's Chief of Staff for Energy

Efficiency and Renewable Energy.

Congressman Boehlert spoke of his personal connection to the Clean Cities Program--his Congressional District is

home to Assistant Secretary of Energy Dan Reicher as well as Orion Bus Manufacturing, one of the leading alternative

fuel bus manufacturers. "I guess I am just once again proving the adage that all politics is local," he said. Boehlert continued

by briefing the audience on the passage of the transportation bill TEA-21, which, according to Boehlert, is called "Green

Tea" because "we actually managed to craft an environmentally friendly transportation bill." He mentioned that under

TEA-21, funds and grants are provided for municipalities to maintain and purchase alternative fuel, low emissions

transit buses, and refueling facilities. The Congressman concluded by saying that TEA-21 will continue funding for alternative

fuel projects for the next 6 years, and that this time must be used to deepen the support for alternative fuel programs.

Senator Dodd proudly spoke of the five Clean Cities in his Connecticut district and the connection he feels with the

Clean Cities Program. He was quick to stress that "the environment is ultimately a local issue. We can talk about the

environment all we want in Washington or Kyoto, but if people in cities and towns across the country aren't putting

these ideas into practice, all the talk and good ideas in the world will be rendered meaningless." He complimented the

Clean Cities Program for prompting people to think differently about our "sources of energy and about the way that public

and private sectors work together."

Truly said that our "world is more fragile today with our current situation regarding dependence on foreign oil." He

continued by giving his local perspective. Denver, Colorado, currently has several thousand AFVs and more than 150 refueling

stations; they hope to dramatically increase those numbers in the next 3 years. Truly highlighted NREL's willingness to do

more to support the Clean Cities Program and alternative fuels through its research and development efforts, hotline,

Web sites, and Clean Cities efforts.