Trucks and SUVs are popular and sometimes necessary when transporting products and supplies, but some of these vehicles can be the most expensive to operate because of poor fuel economy consumption. Although some SUVs are being developed today with better fuel efficiency than in the past decades, called “hybrid SUVs,” they still are among the most consumptive vehicles on the road, and emission reports are not impressive. If you have an old, low miles-per-gallon (mpg) truck or SUV, you could improve your costs for fuel and emission output by trading in for a newer model with higher mpg and reduced emissions. But there may be better options for you.

Ethanol enjoyed a wild ride of publicity at the outset of the current “oil crisis” thanks to generous subsidies from the U.S. government to farmers who could grow corn to be used as fuel. Although the farming community celebrated this new market for their product and sucked up the subsidies as fast as they became available, corn ethanol quickly hit the skids, primarily because its use as a fuel additive was never a suitable option. Why? Because corn is an important food source for both people and livestock, and diverting its use from food to fuel created food shortages which drove up prices in many communities and countries.

Furthermore, ethanol production requires a high energy input, rendering the benefit of using ethanol as an additive to displace petroleum a relatively ineffective means of cutting emissions.

Finally, there just isn’t enough corn in production to meet our need for alternative fuel. If we used all the available corn—leaving none for food—we could make only 1.5 million barrels of ethanol per day, yet we use 21 million barrels of oil each day in the United States.

Brazil has created a more successful ethanol market using sugar cane, which produces more energy and is more efficient, but again, sugar cane is not a crop easily grown in the United States, so it doesn’t show much promise as our solution to alternative fuel needs.

A plus for ethanol is that it can be used in any conventional vehicle in blends of up to 10 percent, and you’ll notice that many fuel pumps today provide a mix of ethanol and petroleum.

Biodiesel fuel has gained some popularity, especially for trucks that require diesel fuel and have low mpg efficiencies. Biodiesel is an oil made from plants (such as soybeans) and can also be made from used fryer oil. Because diesel-burning vehicles can be adapted fairly easily and at low cost by the mechanically inclined, it has become popular among environmentalists to adapt vehicles and fuel them with waste oil collected from restaurants. Of course, as soon as this became semi-popular, the restaurants that once happily unloaded their waste oil to travelers for free began charging for the oil when they recognized a new source of revenue.

Biodiesel can be blended with petroleum or made from 100 percent vegetable oils, but it still produces carbon emissions when it’s burned as fuel, so it’s still contributing to greenhouse gases. Diesel fuel emits 10 to 20 percent more toxic particulate emissions than gasoline, so it also contributes to air pollution, which can be hazardous to our respiratory systems. Also biodiesel is often produced from crops that are grown using unsustainable practices. Check to see if your biodiesel provider is producing his fuel from local waste vegetable oil or commercially grown crops to determine how sustainable it is. Because fryer oil and oil derived from vegetables is in limited supply, biodiesel is a short-term solution to our fuel needs.

Hazard

Biodiesel and waste vegetable oil are not the same thing. Biodiesel is vegetable oil that has been converted to fuel. It is best to convert your diesel vehicle’s engine before you run it on pure waste vegetable oil. To purchase conversion kits, visit www.goldenfuelsystems.com.

I visited a sustainable small business in Burlington, Vermont, that produces biodiesel from vegetable oils collected from area restaurants. Its owner, chemist Scott Gordon, doesn’t anticipate biodiesel becoming the mainstream fuel for vehicles in the future because of vegetable oil availability, the cost of processing, and the fact that it’s not a truly clean solution to our emission issues. However, Gordon does project that biodiesel could be a viable alternative for home and building heating oil.

In 2007, Clif Bar, a company that produces energy bars, switched its delivery vehicles to B99, or 99 percent biodiesel made from used vegetable oil. As a result, it cut its carbon emissions from 255 tons to 15 tons in a single year.

California has led the way (as often seems to be the case with innovative technology and environmentally friendly initiatives) by setting a low-carbon fuel standard as a legislative mandate. The standard established a mandate for lower carbon emissions, which is expected to spur technology of various alternative fuels while reducing oil consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. The plan is hailed because it provides an incentive to markets to develop more-efficient and lower-emission fuels in response to consumer demand.

Massachusetts has announced an interest in establishing a similar standard based on advanced biofuels—those derived from nonpetroleum, nonfood vegetable sources and producing emissions of at least 50 percent less than fossil fuels. A state task force estimates that an advanced biofuel industry could contribute $280 million to $1 billion per year to the state economy by 2025 while reducing petroleum dependence and emissions.

Other states are considering similar options, and according to the Natural Resources Defense Council, the European Union, British Columbia, and Ontario have adopted a low-carbon fuel standard.

As a business owner, you can anticipate that more states and perhaps the federal government will follow these initiatives. You’ll want to plan ahead for the low-carbon fuel standard because it may become a law in your area. Even if it doesn’t, adopting these low-carbon fuel standards for your own fleet is a great move toward greening your business.

Companies with fleets of delivery vehicles can reduce costs by switching to more fuel-efficient vehicles. You may even take advantage of government incentives to upgrade your fleet to more efficient, lower-emission vehicles. The Environmental Defense Fund provides an updated list of incentives available from the federal government, as well as states, and also offers a listing comparing the efficiencies and costs of various hybrid and efficient delivery vehicles (see Appendix B for contact information).

PHH Arval, a leading fleet management service in North America, provides outsourced fleet management solutions for delivery vehicles. With the Environmental Defense Fund, the company has established PHH GreenFleet, the first and most comprehensive greenhouse gas management program for fleet vehicles. More than 60,000 vehicles in their management program have collectively reduced emissions by 14 percent and reduced operating costs by 4 percent (see Appendix B for contact information).

Although trains traditionally were fueled by diesel fuel and thus left behind high emissions and particulate pollution, recent advances in rail diesel technologies are helping make trains a better choice for moving freight than in the past. In September 2008, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a funding program allocating nearly $50 million to programs developing clean diesel fuels for trains and trucks.

Some rail lines are reducing their pollution levels by using smaller diesel, hybrid, or electric engines. If rail cargo is part of your shipping and distribution program, check with your carrier about its fuel and emission policies, and seek out those that are helping reduce their carbon footprint and pollution output.

Going Green

The EPA SmartWay Transport Program provides information, assistance, and incentives to implement more efficient and environmentally friendly transportation options, such as innovative financing and grants to help green the fleets of small businesses. SmartWay certifies vehicles that meet its standards for efficiency and emission reduction. It also provides fuel reduction tips, information on alternative fuels, and a Green Vehicle Guide that compares vehicle choices based on SmartWay standards (see Appendix B).

Many commercial shippers have discovered great savings by converting their fleets to hybrid and fuel-efficient vehicles. If you don’t have your own fleet, you can still take advantage of their investment by utilizing their services. When you contract with shippers, ask them specifically if your packages will be carried on a hybrid or fuel-efficient vehicle. Letting these businesses know that you appreciate their efforts helps them as well as your business—and the planet.

FedEx, also working with the Environmental Defense Fund, was the first commercial shipper to introduce hybrid vehicles into its fleet, with 172 of its 30,000 vehicles now using hybrid technology. The vehicles represent a 75 percent cost increase, but returns on investment (ROI) in terms of reduced gas cost and emissions are significant. According to an April 2008 report from Business Wire, FedEx’s hybrid trucks improve fuel economy by 42 percent, reduce greenhouse gas emissions by about 30 percent, and reduced particulate pollution by 96 percent.

By October 2008, the company had not added any further vehicles to its fleet because of the high cost and lack of government incentives. Hopefully its commitment to environmental improvement will soon be rewarded with greater incentives, which will reduce the cost of efficient vehicles and increase competition in the field. Even at 172 vehicles, FedEx maintains the largest fleet of commercial hybrid trucks in North America.

According to a Christian Science Monitor report in November 2007, UPS has one of the largest truck fleets in the nation. The company uses 50 hybrid vehicles for local deliveries, saving 44,000 gallons of fuel per year and cutting emissions by 457 metric tons of CO₂. The company has also instituted a software program to help minimize driving time and reduce fuel use, and it is reducing its jet fuel consumption by reducing idle time of its fleet of 600 jets—one of the largest fleets in the world—with better coordination of flights, according to The Wall Street Journal (March 11, 2008).

The United States Postal Service (USPS) claims it has the largest civilian fleet of alternative vehicles. The USPS uses some hybrid technology, biodiesel, ethanol, and compressed natural gas for about a third of its fleet of nearly 150,000 delivery vehicles. It worked with General Motors to test a hydrogen fuel cell minivan—the first commercial use of a fuel cell vehicle in the nation—and uses some electric vans, which are zero-emission vehicles. For more information, see Appendix B.

If your business is near a major shipping port and you need to send your products far and wide, you might investigate shipping by boat as an option. Cargo ships do present some environmental problems, though. According to Grist.org, the Bluewater Network says that a single container ship emits more pollution than 2,000 diesel trucks. On top of that, ships carry ballast water, which is typically exchanged in a different port from where it was collected, and release sea creatures in the water, fostering exotic populations that can be damaging to local environments.

Going Green

The Clean Cargo Working Group, convened by the Business for Social Responsibility, is a network of cargo shippers working to clean up the environmental impact of oceangoing cargo. If you need to ship via the seas, you might consult this group and make arrangements to utilize shippers dedicated to reducing their environmental impact.

Selling your product or services to customers in your local market can benefit you in many ways beyond just increasing sales. If you’ve been focusing on distant markets, reduce your shipping costs and delivery times by selling to local customers. Although sales may be smaller, you should be able to compensate for volume through reduced costs of shipping, and you are likely to establish more repeat business and stronger referrals through your local markets. At the same time, you’ll be supporting your local business community by becoming more involved in the regional field.

One benefit of maintaining local markets is that you can get your product off the shelves and into the hands of your customers more quickly if they’re in a regionally accessible delivery zone. Moving product benefits you in terms of inventory and taxes—you’ve got less to store, and you won’t be paying taxes on assets in inventory.

It costs less to ship within your regional zone. Whether you’re providing delivery or shipping through commercial carriers, your cost to get the product to your consumer is reduced if the distance is shorter. In addition, you’re reducing fuel usage and fuel emissions, which reduce your carbon footprint.

Providing products to local businesses helps reinforce the local business market. Networking with other businesses is also likely to help expand your reach for additional sales and present opportunities for working within the community on nonprofit and sustainable initiatives. Sharing your expertise with your local business community will help increase sales and support the local economy.

As you can see, you can reduce your shipping costs and fuel emissions in many ways that will result in lessening your carbon footprint and increasing profits. As you increase your local sales market, you can also let your local community and other customers know about your commitment to the environment and your company’s efforts to create a healthier planet. It’s another win/win for people, the planet, and profits.