The Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) this week announced that the State of Connecticut is making available $7.5 million dollars from the national legal settlement in the Volkswagen (VW) Corporation emissions cheating scandal to fund clean air projects. This is the second round of funding that the state has made available for projects that reduce nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions across the state and meet other program requirements.

“The transportation sector is responsible for over 65 percent of smog-forming air pollution and 40 percent of greenhouse gas emissions in Connecticut,” said DEEP Commissioner Katie Dykes. “Smart investment of these settlement funds for public and private sector projects will make Connecticut a cleaner and healthier place to live.”

The funds will provide reimbursement for projects that replace, or repower, an array of aging diesel mobile sources and/or non-road equipment. Eligible source categories and funding criteria are specified in the State of Connecticut Beneficiary Mitigation Plan and limited by the Environmental Mitigation Trust Agreement for State Beneficiaries. Both non-government and government entities are eligible to apply.

 

Application forms and guidance for the Diesel Emissions Mitigation Program are available on DEEP’s website at www.ct.gov/deep/vw. DEEP has also scheduled a webinar for August 7 to give an overview of the program and review the application forms and related instructions for potential applicants. Project proposals are due to DEEP by 4:00 p.m. on September 16, 2019.

Between June 2016 and January 2017, three Partial Consent Decrees were finalized between the United States, the State of California, and VW regarding the installation and use of emissions control defeat device software on nearly 590,000 VW, Audi, and Porsche branded diesel vehicles sold and operated in the United States from 2009 through 2015.