September 7, 2018
WALNUT, CA—In an effort to provide a clean, healthy environment,Walnut Valley Unified School District has installed new Methane Gas Detection System located in the existing Maintenance and Facility Bus mechanics shop at the main offices located at 880 S. Lemon Avenue in Walnut.
The project consisted of a new methane detection system, overhead methane detection detectors throughout the ceiling of the work space, emergency lights, new overhead exhaust fans with energy efficient motors, new motors to the roll up doors for auto automation during an alarm, auto shut off valve to existing gas regulator, auto shut off to lighting controls during a detection, safety signage, exterior emergency lightings, and complete methane detection control panel.
This project was inspected and approved by the LA County Fire Department.
The District owned and operated facility was in need of upgrades in order to support the periodic maintenance on the existing Compressed Natural Gas (CNG)-fueled vehicle fleet.
Without the upgrades to the maintenance facility, the District would not have been able to adequately inspect and repair its CNG fleet.
WVUSD was able to upgrade its CNG Maintenance Facility thanks, in part, to $75,000 in Clean Transportation Funding from the Mobile Source Air Pollution Reduction Review Committee (MSRC).
The MSRC allocates Clean Transportation Funding from a $4 surcharge on vehicle license fees, specifically to be used for local projects designed to reduce air pollution from motor vehicles.
Over its 25-year history, the MSRC has distributed more than $400 million in funding to innovative clean air projects - like the District’s upgraded maintenance facility - throughout LA, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino Counties that have helped to remove as much as 13,000 tons of air pollution from the skies of Southern California.
Renovations to the facility were needed because the addition of new busses and lack of Methane Gas detector had a negative impact on the District’s transportation program. The addition of the Methane Gas Detector and, exhaust fans and alarm system will increase the facilities safety and allow the District to continue to inspect and repair the current and future CNG fleet of school busses.
The current fleet now stands at 24 CNG buses in use, making up 77% of the District’s fleet. In the last five years, 13 gross polluting diesel buses were replaced with CNG-fueled buses.
Annual tailpipe emission reductions of the 24 gross polluting diesel buses equate to approximately 73,000 GGE, displacing 64,800 lbs. of PM2.5, and 94,040 lbs. of NOx.
Construction was provided by Tomco. The total construction cost was $122,778.00 and funded by the MSRC and Walnut Valley Unified School District. The two-month project total was approximately $122,778.000
Shown:
WVUSD has installed newly renovated equipment at the District Education Center in Walnut.