PHOENIX- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has awarded $829,697 to the City of Phoenix to reduce diesel emissions by retrofitting and replacing city-owned equipment.

The funds are provided under the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act (ARRA) of 2009 National Clean Diesel Funding Assistance Program and will help retrofit 45 pieces of Phoenix's city-owned diesel equipment with diesel particulate filters or diesel oxidation catalysts, and replace an aging garbage hauler. The retro-fitted vehicles will run on ultra-low sulfur diesel with 20 percent biodiesel. The vehicles provide a variety of services, including emergency, park maintenance, street repair, and refuse collection for various Phoenix metropolitan areas.

The Recovery Act allotted the National Clean Diesel Campaign (NCDC) a total of $300 million, of which the National Clean Diesel Funding Assistance Program received $156 million to fund competitive grants across the nation. The Act also included $20 million for the National Clean Diesel Emerging Technology Program grants and $30 million for the SmartWay Clean Diesel Finance Program grants.

For information on the EPA's implementation of ARRA: www.epa.gov/recovery.

For more on the clean diesel program: www.epa.gov/cleandiesel.