The Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy (NDEE) aims to reduce diesel engine emissions through the Nebraska Clean Diesel Rebate Program.

Established in 2008, the Clean Diesel Rebate Program funds the replacement of older diesel school buses and trucks with newer, cleaner-burning alternatives. The program has also funded the replacement of diesel irrigation engines with electric equipment.

Diesel exhaust contains nitrogen oxide (NOx), particulate matter, hydrocarbons, and carbon monoxide, and contributes to the formation of ozone. These substances can cause asthma, bronchitis, and lung damage and increase one’s risk of lung cancer.

To reduce the public’s exposure to these pollutants, the program targets older diesel vehicles that are prone to idle in populated areas, like school buses and refuse trucks. To ensure these vehicles do not continue to produce emissions, they are required to be scrapped after replacement.

Since its inception, the Nebraska Clean Diesel Program has:

· Awarded more than $6.8 million to 268 recipients
· Funded early replacement of 40 school buses
· Funded early replacement of 29 diesel trucks
· Funded replacement of 174 diesel irrigation engines with all-electric equipment
· Reduced nitrogen oxide emissions by 1,210 tons
· Reduced diesel particulate emissions by 59 tons
· Reduced hydrocarbon emissions by 82 tons
· Reduced carbon monoxide emissions by 249 tons

School buses can be replaced by newer diesel, gasoline, or low- NOx propane-powered buses, and diesel trucks can be replaced by newer diesel or low-NOx compressed natural gas engines. Agricultural irrigation pump diesel engines must be replaced with an electric motor or by connecting a submersible pump directly to the electric grid.

The program receives funding from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency through the Diesel Emissions Reduction Act (DERA), authorized by congress in 2005. This money has been supplemented by funds from the Volkswagen Diesel Emissions Environmental Mitigation Trust. Beginning in fall 2024, irrigation engine replacements will be part of NDEE’s ONE RED program, which is funded through a separate EPA grant.