But the new, cleaner diesel is not as environmentally friendly as compressed natural gas, which is the cleanest-burning but most expensive bus fuel on the market, he said. The district has 23 buses that now run on natural gas, and district officials hope to replace their entire fleet with such buses by the year 2015.
Green diesel is a step in the right direction.
The cleaner diesel costs about 5 cents more per gallon than traditional diesel, which costs the district about 1.15 per gallon, Farr said. The district hopes to equip all the buses for low-sulfur fuel by the end of next school year, he said. Board members said they support cleaner fuel as long as it doesn't pinch the district's budget. We need to wean ourselves off of dependence on one kind of fuel. But trustees shouldn't congratulate themselves until they have replaced the district's entire fuel supply with natural gas, which requires new buses, Campbell said.