COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency announced that $2 million in Volkswagen settlement funding is available to help public airports replace or repower aging diesel ground support equipment with cleaner, modern alternatives.
The initiative aims to reduce harmful emissions, improve air quality and strengthen airport infrastructure. Twenty-six counties in the state, including Mahoning, Trumbull and Ashtabula, are eligible under the Diesel Mitigation Trust Fund.
“Ohio’s airports connect people, businesses and communities every day,” said John Logue, Ohio EPA director. “This funding will help improve air quality while strengthening the infrastructure Ohio depends on. Ohio EPA is committed to helping eligible airports access these dollars and move these projects forward.”
The settlement funding is part of Ohio’s allocation from the Volkswagen DMTF, which was created after Volkswagen admitted to using illegal emissions-control devices in certain diesel vehicles. Funds were allocated to states based on the number of affected vehicles registered. Over the past decade, the trust has provided approximately $65 million in Ohio to reduce nitrogen oxide emissions through cleaner transportation technologies.
The trust agreement requires each state to allocate funds to 10 eligible project categories to reduce nitrogen oxide emissions and offset environmental damage.
Past Ohio DMTF projects include replacing or repowering aging diesel trucks; school, shuttle and transit buses; ferries and tugboats; switcher locomotives; airport ground support equipment; forklifts; cargo-handling equipment; and deploying electric vehicle charging infrastructure.
The grant application will be open from Aug. 3 to Sept. 18.
The Ohio EPA will host a free informational webinar at 1:30 p.m. Aug. 12 to walk prospective applicants through the grant process. No registration is required. A recording of the webinar will also be available on the Ohio EPA website for those unable to attend the live webinar.
More information is available HERE.