Fleet Forward Program Launches in Pioneer Courthouse Square

DEQ kicked off the Fleet Forward program in downtown Portland on August 24, 2010. The launch event included displays of a diesel hybrid vehicle, a device that heats and cools truck cabs instead of idling the main engine, a 2010 state-of-the-art heavy-duty diesel rig equipped with aerodynamic devices, and a diesel particulate filter.

Featured speakers included:

• Andy Ginsburg, DEQ air quality division administrator
• Dick Pedersen, DEQ director
• Dan Brown, Environmental Protection Agency
• Beverly Stewart, American Lung Association of Oregon
• Chris Hagerbaumer, Oregon Environmental Council
• Jeff Scroggs, Gordon Trucking, Inc.
• Chris Petrick, Organically Grown Company

The Fleet Forward kick-off celebration featured big rigs from Fleet Forward members, clean diesel technology vendors, and information booths in Portland's Pioneer Square

Event Details

DEQ developed the Fleet Forward program as one more tool to motivate businesses and organizations to be progressive fleet managers. Fleet Forward aims at reducing diesel emissions from the so-called "legacy fleet"—11 million diesel engines nationally that will continue to pollute for a couple of decades, according to the EPA, before being subject to emission standards for new engines.

To qualify, fleets need to go beyond what is required or standard industry practice. They qualify by using cleaner fuels, installing advanced exhaust controls, or by burning less fuel. Fleet Forward membership benefits include: better information about an organization's transportation footprint, a competitive advantage by operating more efficiently, an improved chance of qualifying for jobs calling for cleaner fleets, and public recognition for their environmental leadership. Members receive website promotions including a featured story on their organization, vehicle decals, and ongoing promotion. There is no cost to become a member.

Kathleen Cochrun, the Fleet Forward program lead, told Truckinginfo magazine, "The program represents a much larger opportunity to shift from the current paradigm of requiring grants for anything to happen. It also serves as a screen by which non-mechanical people, such as purchasing officers, can make decisions about meeting preferential or contractual goals for doing business with cleaner fleets."