48 School Districts Reducing Emissions on School Buses

Older school buses in 48 districts across the state will be getting retrofits to reduce diesel emissions.

Some Mississippi children will be breathing a little easier when they return to school. MPB’s Cari Gervin has the story on how the state’s school buses are getting greener.

School buses aren’t known for their pleasant fumes. But the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality is working to make those emissions less toxic.

Spokesperson Robbie Wilbur said the DEQ started the project with a grant from the Environmental Protection Agency.

“And then in April of this year, we got an ARRA grant for 1.73 million, so that’s given us enough money to retrofit school buses for 48 school districts.”

The stimulus funds, also courtesy of the EPA, will be used to place a part in older buses that will reduce carbon monoxide and particulate emissions by 40 percent. It will also reduce the buses’ hydrocarbon emissions by 70 percent.

And that’s good news for kids who take the bus, especially those who have diseases like asthma.

Dennis Karr is a mechanic for the Lafayette County School District. He says he hopes the retrofits on his buses will take place early this fall. But Karr says his district, like many others, is already taking steps to reduce emissions.

“Now what we do – we turn all the engines off, and then when the students loaded, we crank up and start and leave. And that’s helped to cut down on the emissions around the school, you know, cut the idling time down and all that, which helps the kids out.”

The DEQ says the bus retrofits will be complete by the fall of 2010. For MPB News, I’m Cari Gervin in Oxford.