Aug 05 10
Encouraging Alternative Fuel
In an effort to combat the effects of air pollution produced by standard gasoline and diesel fuel, the state of Tennessee offers a number of incentives to encourage the use and production of alternate fuel sources. Tennessee supports the federal ’25 by ’25 initiative, which outlines that 25 percent of US energy consumption will be produced by American agriculture by the year 2025, by enacting a number of programs to facilitate this production.Biodiesel is one of the many hopes for a cleaner future. Either crude or waste vegetable oil can be collected and undergo a chemical reaction creating a form of diesel fuel. This fuel can either be used alone or mixed with traditional petroleum diesel to fuel automobiles. It burns cleaner and is made from a renewable resource making it a much more sustainable source of fuel. The Biodiesel Production Incentive will fund 20 cents per gallon of biodiesel sold to companies in the state up to 10 million gallons per year. Additionally, to encourage the creation of a biofuel infrastructure, grants are awarded to fuel providers to install bio fueling stations. This includes biodiesel and ethanol. The program has an established goal of creating bio fueling stations every 100 miles along Tennessee highways and interstates.In order to encourage the use of alternate fuels and low emission vehicles, cars that meet certain requirements are allowed to use the High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lanes, regardless of the number of passengers. In order to receive this exemption you must obtain and display a decal from the Tennessee Department of Revenue.