Former WVDEP Secretary Austin Caperton said his employees figured out they could help their sister agency by making use of the federal Diesel Emissions Reduction Act (DERA) to secure $317,241.00 in grant funding to buy new, state-of-the-art diesel vehicles. The act was created to allow government agencies to replace older diesel vehicles with more modern, cleaner-burning technology.   “It’s helped our operation by having new trucks, but it’s also helped the environment by reducing our carbon emissions,” WVDOT Secretary Byrd White said. “We are proud of this effort because, by working together, we are saving taxpayer money and also doing our part to limit our environmental impact.”   The DERA allows government agencies to retire older diesel equipment two years sooner than scheduled and replace them with cleaner, green technology vehicles. The new vehicles are designed to burn less fuel and have lower emissions than existing trucks, resulting in a smaller environmental impact.

DERA funding and matching money allowed the Division of Highways (DOH) to replace six older tandem axle dump trucks with six brand new “clean” diesels.

The retired trucks will not be sold for use elsewhere. Under the requirements of the DERA grant, the frames of the retired vehicles are cut and holes are bored into the engines to prevent the trucks from being reused. The remaining parts of these vehicles are kept to be used for spare parts within the DOH.​