Diesel Reduction Act

In 2009, Sunflower and Western Electric Cooperative received funding for new state-of-the-art equipment through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 under the National Clean Diesel Funding Assistance Program through the Diesel Reduction Act. The application was filed by the Kansas Department of Health and Environment on behalf of the cooperatives.

The program was created to reduce diesel emissions and maximize job preservation and create an economic recovery through a variety of diesel emission reduction strategies. Any non-road and highway diesel vehicles and equipment could be replaced under the program with newer, cleaner vehicles and equipment that operate on diesel or alternative fuels and meet a more stringent set of emissions standards. Emissions control and technology have advanced exponentially since the original dozer was commissioned in 1982.

Western Electric Cooperative received funds to replace a digger derrick truck, and Sunflower received funding for a new coal dozer that meets the Environmental Protection Agency’s 2010 regulation for diesel emissions.

The new dozer arrived in December 2009. The lifespan of the new dozer is approximately 24,000 hours, which is roughly 17 years.