TALLAHASSEE, FL – Florida Agriculture and Consumer Services Commissioner Charles Bronson has announced that the Division of Forestry will begin using biodiesel fuel in some of its heavy equipment and maintenance vehicles, including motor graders, tractors, backhoes, and loaders. The Division of Forestry will test a B-20 mixture, containing 20 percent biodiesel and 80 percent regular diesel. As the architect of Florida’s new “Farm to Fuel” initiative, Bronson is working to reduce the use of fossil fuel and help cut Florida and the nation’s dependence on foreign oil.

The Division of Forestry uses more than 1 million gallons of fuel per year, with diesel usage accounting for 65 percent of that total. Two of the Division’s largest Districts, Withlacoochee (Citrus, Hernando, Lake, Pasco, and Sumter counties) and Blackwater (Escambia, Santa Rosa, and Okaloosa counties) have launched the program by installing a specifically designated fuel apparatus to accommodate the use of B-20 at on-site storage tanks used to dispense the fuel. It has not been necessary to make any modifications to equipment.

The Bunnell District (Flagler, St. Johns, and Volusia counties) is already using B-20 fuel from the Department of Transportation in Deland. During the first eight months of this year, the District successfully used 11,300 gallons of B-20.

It is anticipated that the program will ultimately be expanded to include more equipment throughout the Division’s 15 Districts.