Miami University

CONVERTED CARS TO SAVE ENERGY AND THE OZONE

02/12/1997

OXFORD, Ohio -- Miami University officially gets behind the wheel

of a fuel-saving plan to use alternative fuels in some of its fleet vehicles at

1 p.m. Friday, Feb. 14.

Representatives from Cincinnati Gas & Electric Company and the

university's physical facilities department will be launching a pilot program

to test three Miami vehicles converted to use compressed natural gas.

The benefits of alternative-fuel cars include lower fuel costs (about

80cents/gallon equivalent), abundance of supply, fewer auto emissions and less

dependence on foreign oil, says Mark Slavik, environmental manager in the

physical facilities department.

CG&E converted three Miami vehicles in an agreement with the

university.

In addition, students in Miami's Institute for Environmental Sciences are

studying the university's fleet to determine whether other vehicles should be

considered for conversion. Miami also soon will own six new Ford Taurus

flexible fuel vehicles.

Miami, the University of Cincinnati and several municipalities and

agencies belong to the Tri-State Alternative Fuels Coalition. The coalition's

efforts earned the region the designation of being a Clean Cities

participant.

Clean Cities is a locally based partnership coordinated by the U.S.

Department of Energy to expand the use of alternatives to gasoline and diesel

fuel. Alternative fuels include biofuels, ethanol, methanol, electricity,

natural gas, propane, coal-derived liquid fuels, hydrogen and hybrid fuel

combinations.