Apr 25, 2008

Want Fries With That Diesel?

In this busy workaday world, maybe it’s time to stop and smell the french fries. At Merrimack College, the scent is now coming from tail pipes, not the cafeteria. The college is using a more eco-friendly blended fuel (cooking oil/diesel) to run a fleet of maintenance vehicles to help the environment and save money for the college.

While watching a TV program on the use of eco-friendly fuel, the director of the Physical Plant Department at Merrimack, Robert Coppola, had a eureka moment. “If they can do it, why can’t Merrimack?” he asked himself. Now, the blended fuel is being used in all of Merrimack’s diesel run vehicles -- over 20 pieces of machinery, both small and large.

For Merrimack College, the use of a “greener” blended fuel holds a variety of benefits, among them environmental, financial, and educational. Typically, the used cooking oil from the college food services is waste, but now it’s a reusable resource. The blended cooking oil/diesel fuel also cuts down on emissions. It is estimated that the college will consume 20 percent less diesel a year through this project.

Merrimack’s food service uses 1,200 gallons of vegetable oil annually. Rather than disposing of the used cooking oil (a costly service), the oil is filtered, then mixed with diesel fuel. The college is saving on the cost of diesel (usually 5,800 gallons a year), and the fee for waste oil pick-up that additionally has equaled several thousand dollars a year. Most importantly, the use of blended fuel has the campus working together for a global cause. Both the college’s food services and physical plant organizations worked hand-in-hand for months on this project.