Emissions Banff: The Greening Of A HighwayJason Hardy's life blood is the busy 140- kilometer stretch of highway between Calgary and Banff. His company, Banff Airporter, shuttles tourists and residents between the national park and Calgary International Airport at least 20 times a day.In 2002, Climate Change Central helped sponsor a pilot project, eMissions Banff, that enabled Hardy to convert five 24-passenger shuttle buses and three 13-passenger vans to natural gas. Hardy estimates the conversions have saved his company over $75,000 in the past 18 months. The program has also become an environmental calling card for Hardy: His company was nominated for an Emerald Award and a federal Heritage Tourism Award for best environmental practices. eMissions Banff converted about 20 commercial vehicles to natural gas, reducing C02 emissions by about 320 tonnes annually, and replacing about 32,000 litres of gasoline with natural gas every month. ATCO Gas constructed a new natural gas refueling facility in Banff to complement one near the Calgary airport. A second phase of the project converted Banff taxis and other commercial vehicles to natural gas. |
