Midwest Clean Diesel Initiative

For fiscal year 2008, Congress appropriated funds for the first time under the Energy Policy Act (2005) to help reduce harmful emissions from heavy duty diesel engines. Through the National Clean Diesel Campaign, the EPA will award grants to assist its eligible partners in building diesel emission reduction programs across the country that improve air quality and protect public health. For fiscal year 2008, the amount of funding available nationally is $49.2 million.

This year, Clean Diesel funding is split into two basic components:

• National Clean Diesel program (70% of funding)
• State Clean Diesel Grant program (30% of funding)

EPA Region 5, through the Midwest Clean Diesel Initiative, will award grants to assist its eligible partners in reducing diesel emissions across the region. EPA Region 5 has approximately $5 million in funding available for the deployment of EPA and CARB-verified and certified technologies. To view the Region 5 FY08 clean diesel Request for Proposals (RFP), click here.

For more information about both the National Clean Diesel program and the State Clean Diesel program, please see:

• National Clean Diesel Emerging Technologies Program Fact Sheet (PDF, 2 pgs., 65 KB, About PDF)
• National Clean Diesel Program FY2008 Fact Sheet (PDF, 2 pgs., 61 KB, About PDF)
• Regional Competition Information Fact Sheet (PDF, 2 pgs., 80 KB, About PDF)
• State Clean Diesel Program FY2008 Fact Sheet (PDF, 2 pgs., 67 KB, About PDF)

For More Information:

• National Clean Diesel Campaign
• For questions specific to EPA Region 5 contact: Steve Marquardt (marquardt.steve@epa.gov)

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EPA Region 5/MCDI FY08 Clean Diesel Funding RFP

On March 14, 2008, EPA Region 5, through the Midwest Clean Diesel Initiative, announced the availability of approximately $5 million in clean diesel funds as part of the 2008 National Clean Diesel Program. This RFP focuses on reducing emissions from existing diesel engines within the Region 5 states of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin. The exact number of cooperative agreements EPA will fund as a result of this announcement are going to be based on the quality of the project proposals received and the availability of funding. We anticipate awarding 10-20 cooperative agreements for amounts ranging between $100,000 and $750,000.

The 2008 MCDI Request For Proposal:

The 2008 Region 5/Midwest Clean Diesel Initiative RFP (PDF, 31 pgs., 171 KB, About PDF)

Who can apply?

• Under this solicitation, only the following entities are eligible to apply for assistance, in accordance with Section 791(3) of the Energy Policy Act of 2005: 

  • A regional, State, local or tribal agency or port authority with jurisdiction over transportation or air quality; and,
  • A nonprofit organization or institution that: 1) represents or provides pollution reduction or educational services to persons or organizations that own or operate diesel fleets; or 2) has, as its principal purpose, the promotion of transportation or air quality.   
  • School districts, municipalities, metropolitan planning organizations, cities and counties are all eligible entities under this Request for Proposals within the extent that they fall within the definition above. 

What types of projects can I propose?

• Idling and Retrofit Technologies and Engine Upgrades – EPA Region 5 will fund 100% of the cost of idling or retrofit technologies.
• Cleaner Fuel Use – EPA Region 5 will fund the cost differential between the cleaner fuel and conventional diesel fuel.
• Engine Repower – EPA Region 5 will fund up to 50% of the cost of an engine repower.
• Vehicle/Equipment Replacement – EPA Region 5 will fund up to 25% of the cost of a new vehicle or piece of equipment (except for school buses).
• School Bus Replacement:
• For buses that meet EPA’s 2010 emissions standards, EPA Region 5 will fund 50% of the cost of a replacement school bus.
• For buses that meet EPA’s 2007 emissions standards, EPA Region 5 will fund 25% of the cost of a replacement school bus

• If an innovative finance project involves installation of idle reduction technology or vehicles or equipment retrofitted with a verified emission control technology, then this program will finance up to 100% of the cost of idling reduction technology, or up to 100% of the cost of the vehicle or equipment retrofitted with verified emission control technology.
• If an innovative finance project involves vehicle/equipment replacement, then the program will finance up to 100% of the cost of a newer vehicle or piece of equipment if the existing vehicle or equipment is scrapped or the replaced engine is returned to the original engine manufacturer for remanufacturing to a cleaner standard. 

For more complete information on what constitutes an eligible project, please see the RFP.

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How Will I Quantify My Project's Emission Reductions?

• To estimate some of the anticipated outputs of your proposal, (e.g. pollution reduced), EPA encourages you to use the Diesel Emissions Quantifier found at http://cfpub.epa.gov/quantifier.  
• You will need to fill out this fleet table spreadsheet (Excel Spreadsheet, 410 KB) to submit your fleet information to EPA.

Is There A Funding Match Requirement?

• There is no requirement to provide matching funds but additional points are awarded based on leveraged resources and partnering. EPA Region 5 encourages leveraged and matching funds to maximize the impact of the clean diesel projects.

When Is My Proposal Due?

• Applications should be submitted electronically through Grants.gov no later than Thursday, June 12, 2008, 6:00 pm, Central Daylight Time.  If an applicant cannot submit an electronic application, please contact Sharleen Getschman (312-353-3486 and/or getschman.sharleen@epa.gov) for alternative submission methods. We encourage you to use the Grants.gov web site to submit your application.
• Please note that the registration process to apply for this funding opportunity through grants.gov can take up to one week or longer to complete.   We advise applicants to start the registration process as soon as possible, and to refer to the RFP for specific instructions.

Who Can I Contact For Questions Or Help?

• As we receive and answer questions related to the RFP, answers are posted and stored in the Q&A document (PDF, 2 pgs., 29 KB, About PDF) . Before emailing your question to EPA, check this document because your question may have already been answered.
• The Q&A document will be updated weekly on this web page as we receive questions.
• If you can't find an answer to your question in the Q&A Document, or to ask a specific question about the 2007 MCDI RFP, please contact Shari Holloway at 312-886-6778 and/or holloway.shari@epa.gov. Answered questions will appear in the next update of the Q&A document.
• Contact Steve Marquardt (312-353-3214 and/or marquardt.steve@epa.gov) or Sharleen Getschman (312-353-3486 and/or getschman.sharleen@epa.gov) for any other questions or assistance you may need.

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