WASHINGTON – The University of Washington Motor Pool is pushing ahead with its plans to utilize biodiesel in its diesel-powered vehicles, according to http://thedaily.washington.edu. 

The University currently uses B-5 in their diesel-powered vehicles. The UW Motor Pool has been using B-5 since the fall of 2006, when a biodiesel pump was installed at the motor vehicle depot.

“In the fall of 2006, [the UW Motor Pool] installed a diesel blend at our fuel pumps that includes 5 percent biodiesel, with the aim to increase this to 20 percent after the trial period,” according to the UW Motor Pool Web site.

That trial period is nearing its end as the UW Motor Pool is making the switch from B-5 fuel to B-20 fuel. The UW Motor Pool is going to start using B-20 in the next few weeks, and there are plans for B-90 in the future.

The move to B20 in the coming weeks places the UW Motor Pool ahead of schedule on the biodiesel front. The spring 2006 UW Motor Pool newsletter, the first to outline plans for the implementation of biodiesel, pegged the starting date of the B-20 biodiesel blends in 2009.

All of these changes are coming along as part of the Green Fleet Initiative for the University, originally authored by David Carr, the manager of Motor Pool Operations. The initiative covers a vast range of recycling, sustainability, and other “green” policies meant to reduce the environmental impact of the University’s day-to-day operations.