Concord's Commitment to Clean Air Began More Than 10 Years Ago

RIDER bus in Concord

The City of Concord began its clean air commitment back in 1999 when it implemented express bus service to Charlotte. That act alone removed 220 cars from the roadways during morning and evening commutes, reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by an estimated 46,000-plus pounds; volatile organic compounds (VOCs) by nearly 4,000 pounds; and nitrogen oxide (NOx) by more than 470 pounds.

The city’s commitment persists. “We have a green fleet mentality,” says Daniel Nuckolls, Concord’s fleet and transit services director. “When I got here in 2002, we started educating our co-workers. They can’t go into any of our buildings or through the gate without seeing the ozone action status code for that day. It just blossomed from there.”

 Concord has implemented policies that reduce ozone pollution and has purchased vehicles that make our air easier to breathe. Officials estimate that Concord’s no idling policy for city vehicles has reduced CO2 emissions by 5,768 pounds, VOCs by 555 pounds and NOx by 500 pounds. Prohibiting the fueling of vehicles during the summer’s warmest part of the day also reduces VOCs that cause ground-level ozone.

In 2008 the city began using biodiesel, which displaces about 60,000 gallons of diesel fuel each year and reduces hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide and fine particulate matter. “That was one of the biggest steps we took,” Nuckolls says. “We didn’t wait on a grant to do any of these things, although we have used grant money for some projects. We typically implement the projects in our normal purchasing each year.” Nearly 300 vehicles in the Concord fleet run on biodiesel.

Fuel-efficient police cars have made a difference, too. A total of 66 percent of the police fleet is powered by six-cylinder engines or smaller. The cars now get 13.04 miles per gallon, compared to 10.46 mpg in the past, saving 32,500 gallons of fuel over a five-year period.

Two electric vehicles, used for police parking enforcement in the city center, have replaced gasoline-powered vehicles. And the city now uses 14 hybrid vehicles, which has saved the city 9,000 gallons of fuel since 2003.?Its Rider Transit System, which serves Concord and Kannapolis, has provided a million rides in 3 ½ years.

Nuckolls feels a keen obligation to do everything he can in his position to mitigate air pollution. “It’s my personal view that as a fleet manager I oversee one of the biggest pollution monsters in the region,” he says. The City of Concord uses 1,000 vehicles. “So it’s incumbent upon me and us to do something with our fleet.”