City of Warrenville, Illinois, joins B20 Club as newest member

The B20 Club recently welcomed the city of Warrenville as its newest member. Located in DuPage County, Illinois, Warrenville works to preserve and promote a clean, healthy, sustainable environment with natural, open spaces. “The city explores a variety of ways to promote sustainable living, which has included ways to improve fleet performance while lowering emissions,” said Kristin Youngmeyer, a management analyst with the city of Warrenville. In 2014, a fleet vehicle was retrofitted from unleaded gasoline to compressed natural gas (CNG). In 2018, the city of Warrenville received a grant from the American Lung Association to install diesel particulate filters (DPFs), an emission-control technology, on three trucks in the public-works fleet. The city began using B20 fuel that same year.

Also in 2018, Warrenville and the Forest Preserve District of DuPage County entered into an intergovernmental agreement to allow the city to utilize the FPDDC’s fueling facility. In all, 15 vehicles and various pieces of equipment consume cleaner-burning, lower-carbon B20 biodiesel.

The public-works fleet covers a modest number of miles, with work relating more to a site and the city being only 5.5 square miles in size. As a result, its vehicles can have a longer life span compared to peers in the industry. “The Warrenville Public Works staff is dedicated to delivering quality, professional services to improve the community, and this includes exploring alternative-fuel options to enhance fleet performance, while also being fiscally responsible with city resources, and mindful of the environment,” Youngmeyer added. Andrew Larson, ISA director of market development, said, “Illinois Soybean Association is excited to welcome the city of Warrenville as the newest B20 Club member. With this new partnership, the city is continuing its efforts to promote a healthy environment by using a clean, renewable fuel grown right here in Illinois.”

A partnership between the Illinois Soybean Association and the American Lung Association, the B20 Club recognizes a select group of Illinois-based organizations with strong commitments to run fleets on biodiesel blends of 20 percent or greater. For more information on the B20 Club, visit www.b20club.org.