Environmentally Friendly Fuel Now Available at the Pump
20 December 1999
American Lung Association of Minnesota: Environmentally Friendly Fuel Now Available at the Pump
Low Emission Ethanol Helps Create a Cleaner Environment, Healthier Air
ST. PAUL, Minn., Dec. 17 -- The American Lung Association of
Minnesota (ALAMN) announced today that E85, a blend of 85% ethanol and just
15% petroleum is available at a growing number of fuel stations in Minnesota.
Ethanol is a renewable resource that burns cleaner than gasoline and when
blended into E85, the result is a 100+ octane rating and a 5% increase in
engine horsepower. Typically, E85 costs about the same as 87-octane gasoline.
Use of E85 reduces emissions of harmful pollutants such as ozone, benzene and
carbon dioxide, a primary contributor to global warming. The Ethanol is
produced in Minnesota at 15 ethanol plants from grain and waste materials such
as cheese whey and waste beverage products.
E85 is for use only in Flexible Fuel Vehicles (FFVs) designed to run on
any E85-gasoline mix. An estimated 25,000 FFVs are presently registered in
Minnesota. That number will easily double by next summer. Eight FFV models
-- minivans, pickups and sedans, are available at Ford, General Motors,
DaimlerChrysler and Mazda dealerships. In fact, all 1999 and 2000 Ford 3.0-L
Ranger pickups (produced in St. Paul) and all new 3.0-L Taurus LX sedans can
use E85. FFVs cost no more than gasoline-only vehicles and are manufactured
as standard equipment.
"The public can significantly improve our air quality by making clean air
choices. If the public demands it, more clean fuels and vehicles will become
available. In this day and age, the consumer rules," said Tim Gerlach, ALAMN
director of outdoor air programs.
The American Lung Association of Minnesota and its industry and government
partners are helping retailers install E85 pumps, resulting in about 40
Southern Minnesota fueling sites by June 2000. Holiday Stationstores, Kwik
Trip, Freedom, Cenex, Conoco and Mobil stations will join existing stations
already offering E85. Holiday Stationstores is taking the lead in offering
the public a clean air fuel choice by adding E85 to 17 metro Stationstores.
The University of Minnesota, the State of Minnesota and Hennepin County
will all offer E85 to their fleets. The U.S. Postal Service has ordered more
than 22,000 E85-capable delivery vehicles that will begin deployment before
the year's end. The U.S. General Services Administration and U.S. Department
of Energy are concentrating resources in the Twin Cities and five other cities
to boost alternative fuels usage in the federal fleet.
Because few of us think twice about the connections between fuels, our
cars, the environment and human health, ALAMN is working to educate Minnesota
drivers on clean air choices they can make at the pump. ALAMN has introduced
the Clean Air Fuels Education (CAFE) Alliance, an organization of industry and
government supporters promoting cleaner traditional and alternative fuels and
vehicle technologies. CAFE is developing a daily Air Quality Advisory,
point-of-sale materials and Web-based reports on Minnesota fuel composition
and emissions.
ALAMN has been fighting lung disease through education, community service,
advocacy and research. Lung disease, the third leading cause of death in
America, is greatly affected by harmful emissions from automobile tail pipes.
Over the last decade, the death rate from lung disease has been growing faster
than the death rate from any other disease. The American Lung Association of
Minnesota strongly supports the use of cleaner burning fuels under the CAFE
Alliance.
The American Lung Association of Minnesota (ALAMN), serving Minnesotans
since 1903, is one of the oldest non-profit voluntary health organizations in
the nation. ALAMN provides advocacy, research, education and programs to
promote healthy air, healthy people and healthy lungs. Key areas of focus
include: outdoor and indoor air quality, asthma management, smoking
prevention and cessation, flu and pneumonia immunization, and lung disease
management. For more information please call 651-227-8014 or 800-642-5864 or
visit the websites at http://www.alamn.org or http://www.healthhouse.org