The Yolo-Solano Air Quality Management District (AQMD), in Davis, Calif., awarded more than $350,000 in grants to fund 14 projects that will improve air quality in local communities, according to AQMD.

The District’s Clean Air Funds program distributes money collected through vehicle registration fees and Solano County property tax to public agencies, private businesses, and non-profit organizations for projects focused on reducing air pollution from mobile sources within the district.

The following is a full list of approved grants and brief descriptions of funded projects.

• The Explorit Science Center in Davis was awarded $25,375 to assist in the replacement of a heavy-use vehicle with a lower-emission model. Explorit has programs to educate local children about environmental issues, including air quality.

• North Bay Hay, based near Esparto, was awarded $15,000 for a diesel truck retrofit. The grant will help the company transport hay locally with a lower pollution burden.

• The Yolo County Transportation District was awarded $15,000 for its Summer Sizzler program. The grant will fund a long-running program that allows youth to purchase a summertime Yolobus pass at a discounted rate in an effort to promote transit as an alternative transportation mode.

• Tuleyome, a Woodland-based conservation group, was awarded $9,600 to fund local showings of an environment-focused play produced by Nature’s Theater of Davis. The Kids From Planet Earth will educate students about pollution and how they can reduce it.

• The City of Dixon was awarded $15,421 to retrofit a utility vacuum truck. The retrofit will achieve cost-effective emissions reductions for the District.

• Valley Farm Transport was awarded $40,000 to replace a 1992 diesel yard truck with a cleaner model. Dubbed the “yard goat,” the truck moves trailers around VFT’s Dixon yard to limit the need to start up heavier diesel engines more frequently.

• Recology was awarded $15,000 to replace heavy-duty collection vehicles with compressed natural gas models. CNG produces fewer air pollutants than diesel or traditional gasoline engines, according to AQMD.

• The City of Rio Vista was awarded two grants: $19,000 to replace a pickup truck in its fleet with a new model and $33,000 to replace a diesel mower with a cleaner version. These projects will reduce the city’s emissions load for a prolonged period of time.

• Solano County was awarded two grants: $60,000 to replace a motor grader and $90,000 to complete the final phase of the Vacaville-Dixon Bikeway. The grader replacement will reduce emissions from the county’s heavy equipment fleet, and the bikeway improves an important cycling corridor to make alternative transportation safer and more feasible for residents of northern Solano.

• Breathe California of Sacramento-Emigrant Trails was awarded $9,604 to implement its Healthy School Air Campaign at a Solano school site. The campaign will work to reduce idling around the campus and boost participation in school carpools.

• The League of American Bicyclists was awarded $3,000 to implement its Smart Cycling program in Vacaville and Dixon. The grant will produce a class teaching young adults safe urban cycling techniques to build confidence and promote alternative transportation.

For more information on the Clean Air Funds program or any of the funded projects, please contact Tom Hall at thall@ysaqmd.org or (530) 757-3657.