CAMBRIDGE, MA – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency gave a grant of $83,467 to the city of Cambridge and MIT to collaborate in an effort to reduce diesel pollution from their respective vehicle fleets over the next two years, according to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. From a pool of 83 applicants, only 18 grants were awarded. MIT and the city will retrofit 34 medium- and heavy-duty vehicles with advanced pollution control equipment through the Clean Diesel Collaborative for a Healthy Cambridge. Cambridge's large population is vulnerable to air pollution, especially diesel emissions. Diesel pollution has been linked to numerous health conditions, including asthma, cancer, and heart disease. In the 2004 Cambridge Public Health Assessment, the Cambridge Health Alliance identified childhood asthma as a priority health concern.