The fleet of Sacramento County garbage trucks hauling trash to the landfill will be powered by reclaimed gasses from other landfills.
Sacramento County has committed to a multiple-year contract to use an advanced biofuel in its fleet of 60 garbage trucks.
Since 2001, the trucks have been fueled by liquefied natural gas. They use more than 1 million gallons of LNG per year. The switch to the biofuel will not change the amount of fuel used, but it will be cheaper and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
The fuel will be supplied by Applied LNG, which is based in Westlake Village.
The fuel is not produced at Sacramento’s landfill, said county spokeswoman Chris Andis.
The county originally moved to LNG because it can reduce greenhouse gas emissions by up to 25 percent compared to diesel fuel. The renewable LNG reduces overall greenhouse gas emissions by 90 percent compared to diesel.
The renewable LNG has such a low carbon footprint because it makes use of recycled carbon currently in circulation in the environment, rather than releasing carbon that had been trapped in the earth.
State credits generated under California’s renewable fuel standard have driven down the fuel’s cost, making renewable LNG cheaper than fossil fuels.
“We are extremely proud that Sacramento County is diversifying its fleet fuel portfolio with 100 percent renewable LNG as part of the broader effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions,” said Phil Serna, Sacramento County supervisor and member of the California Air Resources Board, in a news release.
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