WASHINGTON- Choice Environmental Services of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and Republic Services, Inc., were among the recipients of the 2010 National NGV Achievement Awards from NGVAmerica and the Clean Vehicle Education Foundation (CVEF), two organizations dedicated to increasing the use of natural gas vehicles to improve air quality, lessening dependence on foreign oil, and reducing fleet operator costs. 

Choice Environmental Services of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., was honored for its efforts as a small independent company to implement the first natural gas vehicle refuse fleet of 11 trucks in Florida. Choice is a residential, commercial, institutional and industrial provider of solid waste and recycling services, serving the community of South Florida. 

In early 2009, Choice approached the City of Fort Lauderdale about offering an innovative environmental way to provide residential waste and recycling services utilizing cleaner, quieter compressed natural gas powered collection vehicles. The use of CNG powered vehicles was on the deciding factors in Choice being awarded a contract in May 2009. In October 2009, Choice began deploying 11 CNG powered collection trucks. To fuel the vehicles, Choice contracted with Clean Energy, to build a private time-fill station located at the company's facility in Pompano Beach, with natural gas provided by TECO, Florida's largest natural gas distribution company. 

Choice plans to build a second station and has received a state grant from the Executive Office of the Governor of Florida and the Florida Energy and Climate Commission. This station will be available for both public and private use, according to the company.

NGVAmerica and CVEF also recognized Republic Services, Inc.'s Joseph Noorlag, vice president - Operations Support, West Region, for his efforts this year in deploying 226 refuse vehicles at 10 facilities from California to Washington. These trucks account for 50 percent of Republic's West Region truck purchases in 2010 and more than 20 percent of the 2010 replacement truck plan for the entire company. Each truck will use about 9,100 diesel gallon equivalents of natural gas per year, displacing more than two million gallons of diesel fuel annually. 

To support its fleet, Republic is building four CNG fueling stations in 2010, with another five stations planned for 2011, according to the company.

Based in Phoenix, Republic provides services through 400 collection companies in 40 states and Puerto Rico and operates 242 transfer stations, 213 sold waste landfills, and 78 recycling centers.

Verizon was also named a recipient of the 2010 National NGV Achievement Award.