From Austin to Boston in a natural gas vehicle

March 9, 2010 by Dan Gibson · 1 Comment
Filed under: Natural Gas

We’ve done quite a few stories on natural gas vehicles here at True Blue but my favorite ones are always the ones about people showing initiative. A great example of that is Castlen Kennedy.

I came across Castlen initially when I saw her name pop up in the CNGNow twitter stream. She’s planning an extended trip (Austin to Boston) in her new CNG-fueled Tahoe. Castlen has a degree in Public Affairs which might explain why she is doing such an excellent job using the web to promote her experience. You can read about the trip on her blog, follow her on Twitter and even become a Facebook fan. If you’re on Facebook, take some time to join AGA natural gas Facebook fan page.

Before you go though, I did have a chance to sit down with Castlen to get her thoughts on her upcoming trip. You can read on below and be sure to let us know what you think in the comments.

Tell us about yourself?

I am native of Houston, currently living in Austin as I pursue a Dual Masters at the University of Texas. I plan to graduate in May 2011 with a Masters in Public Affairs from the Lyndon Baines Johnson School of Public Affairs and a Masters of Arts in Energy & Earth Resources from the Jackson School of Geosciences.

In addition to being a full time student, I work part time for Apache Corporation, an independent oil and natural gas producer headquartered in Houston. Before returning to school in the fall of 2008, I spent seven years in various positions in both the public and private sector working on energy issues. Prior to joining Apache Corporation in 2006, I worked in the Office of Fossil Energy at the United States Department of Energy as a Senior Policy Advisor on oil and natural gas issues. Before DOE, I also held positions at S&B Infrastructure, RWE Trading Americas and Enron Corporation.

I am recently married and live with my husband, Cory, and our Boston Terrier, Ralphie. In my free time I like taking Ralphie to the dog park, working out and travelling.

Why did you decide to do this?

With a new understanding of our abundant natural gas resources in the US, it seems all things gas-related are getting more attention these days from transportation to power generation and Bloomboxes! A thesis is required for my dual masters, and I wanted to combine the energy aspect of my degrees with the policy piece and the transportation fuel possibilities of natural gas sounded really exciting. The idea to make it more than just a report and add an actual trip came about because I thought it would be a whole lot of fun and add an anecdotal narrative to my thesis.

As I talked to friends and family about my plans, I soon learned few people outside of the industry realized natural gas as a transportation fuel was even an option. I realized I could use the trip as an opportunity to educate my social circle on the technology and its related benefits and challenges. The website and blog naturally followed.

When does your trip start?

I will depart Austin on Wednesday, May 19th and expect the trip to take about a week.

Give us some insight into how you’re planning your trip?

The first step was figuring out where I could get a car. Apache, my employer, was looking into converting some vehicles for their car pool program, and I approached them about taking one of those on the trip. Once they agreed, I had to figure out the fuel capacity and efficiency of the Tahoe so I could estimate what my range would be on a full CNG fill. Once I had that number pegged, I was able to use a couple of different maps of stations to create the route. DOE has a good one online.

I wasn’t initially sure where I wanted to go, but knew I needed to go somewhere far away. I have never been to Boston and “Austin to Boston” had an obvious ring to it. The longest stretch on my trip is about 250 miles, and the Tahoe should be able to comfortably cover it.

What are your plans during the trip?

I want to make stops along the way to tour facilities and interview individuals to highlight different aspects of the fuel. For example, in addition to the obvious fuel stops, I plan to visit a dealership that does vehicle conversions, visit a natural gas production site, interview a fleet manager who has done a conversion, and maybe even visit an LNG facility. I have a lot of other ideas for stops I will make along the way, so you will have to stay tuned and follow the blog to see where I actually end up!

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Tags: vehicles

First CNG- Powered Ambulance

February 4, 2010 by Aaron Johnson · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Natural Gas

One of the sites I follow regularly, NGV Global, recently did a post on the USA’s First CNG- Powered Ambulance. It’s really great to hear how the city of Palm Desert, CA worked to convert one of their existing ambulances to a Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) Engine. They modified a 2009 Ford E450 6.8L gasoline chassis, to a dedicated CNG Engine and three cylinders carrying approx 30 gge (Gasoline Gallon Equivalents), or 26 gallons equivalent of CNG. The price tag for this particular project came in at $186,000.

The Palm Desert city council suggested the possibility using an ambulance powered by compressed natural gas (CNG) and they put their money where their mouth is. Read more info about the partners involved in the project. It appears their city council is aware of the abundant amount of natural gas available domestically.

Now there is at least one ambulance on the street that is environmentally friendly in its travels to serve their community.

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Tags: vehicles

New natural gas trucks coming to Waste Management

January 26, 2010 by Dan Gibson · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Natural Gas

We get a ton of natural gas vehicle stories coming through the AGA doors. Here’s another one via automotive-fleet.com. Waste Management deployed 12 new compressed natural gas (CNG) trash-collection trucks in Santa Ana and Irvine California. The trucks were purchased with a grant from the Mobile Source Air Pollution Reduction Review Committee (MSRC) in an effort to improve air quality in the Southern California region. Waste Management of Orange County serves more than 200,000 residential customers and approximately 15,000 commercial customers in nine cities and several unincorporated regions of the county.

Every little bit helps and these 12 trucks will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 218 metric tons each year compared to their diesel counterparts. The equipment upgrade will reduce smog-causing nitrogen oxide emissions by 3.6 tons a year. The collection trucks are quieter and will also reduce noise pollution.

“We are happy to work with Waste Management on their continued effort toward cleaner air in the communities they serve,” said MSRC Vice-Chair Greg Winterbottom, who represents Orange County Transportation Authority on the MSRC. “Their leadership in clean truck technology is gratifying to us at MSRC and we enjoy our partnership with them.”

MSRC granted Waste Management a $32,000 award per truck to purchase seven trucks in Irvine and five trucks in Santa Ana, for a total award of $384,000. The MSRC’s sole mission is to fund projects that reduce air pollution from motor vehicles within the South Coast Air District in Southern California.

“We are committed to helping our region improve air quality and with our new trucks, we are investing in cleaner air,” said David Ross, senior district manager of Waste Management of Orange County.

Tell us about your natural gas vehicle story in the comments below.

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