News Item
Guemes Ferry Converts to Biodiesel - 06/22/08
Fuel is lower in emissions and easier on engines
By RALPH SCHWARTZ
Staff Writer
From the Skagit Valley Herald
The Guemes ferry now runs on a biodiesel blend, with some help from a
state grant that covers the price difference between the soy-based fuel and
conventional petroleum diesel.
Biodiesel may be more expensive, but the added cost will be offset by
the grant in the short term and then by reduced maintenance costs, Ferry
Manager Ron Panzero said.
The ferry manager said he expects longer engine life with biodiesel. The
fuel also cleans fuel lines and tanks, he said. This could reduce or
eliminate the $8,000 to $10,000 Skagit County spends each time crews clean
the fuel tanks, Panzero said.
Biodiesel's cleaning power has a downside. Washington State Ferries had
to scuttle a biodiesel pilot program three years ago after fuel filters
became clogged.
Having learned from its initial mistake, the state ferry system retooled
its biodiesel program and started using the fuel again in March. Two vessels
are running on the fuel with no hitches so far, said Paul Brodeur, director
of vessel maintenance for State Ferries.
The state appears to have avoided more filter clogging by introducing
incrementally higher concentrations of biodiesel into the fuel blend. On
advice from people in the biodiesel industry, Panzero is doing the same.
The first blend, added to the fuel tanks for one of the vessel's two
diesel engines on June 11, was only 3 percent biodiesel. Panzero plans to
step that up to 10, 15 and then 20 percent by November. The second engine
will follow close behind. All along, Panzero will make sure the vessel's
operation isn't compromised.
The ferry manager said he made the switch for several reasons. The
county commissioners showed interest in biodiesel, he said, and there is a
high level of awareness of the alternative fuel on Guemes Island.
"A big part of (our decision) is the emissions," Panzero said. "We do
have some cars on Guemes Island that burn 100 percent biodiesel. You can
stick your nose on the exhaust, and it doesn't choke you out."
Straight petroleum diesel has higher emissions than biodiesel, and the
ferry crew had been bothered by the fumes, Panzero said. Also, a neighboring
marina in Anacortes had complained about soot from the ferry, Panzero said.
"If we can save a little bit as far as what the crew breathes and what
we're putting into the atmosphere, then we're doing a little bit of our
part," he said.
Commissioner Don Munks said he was concerned that the global use of
biodiesel might be increasing the demand for food commodities such as
soybeans, adversely affecting the food supply and the cost of cattle feed.
But he said he wasn't so concerned that he would reject the Guemes ferry
biodiesel program, which Panzero expects will continue indefinitely.
"I am all in favor of anything that is going to reduce our dependence on
crude oil and other energy sources we're going to get from other countries,"
Munks said. "We need to be self-sufficient."
In addition to covering the price difference between biodiesel and
petroleum diesel, the $12,000 Department of Ecology grant pays for fuel-tank
cleaning and fuel filters.
Ralph Schwartz can be reached at 360-416-2138 or rschwartz@skagitvalleyherald.com
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