Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy (NDEE) Director Jim Macy announced on February 3, 2023 that the 2022 Nebraska Clean Diesel Program is awarding approximately $325,000 in rebates to seventeen farmers across the state to aid in the replacement of diesel irrigation engines with electric motors.

The diesel engines being replaced must be scrapped in order to eliminate their harmful pollutant emissions. Nitrogen oxides emitted by diesel engines can have direct adverse effects on respiratory health; they can also contribute to the formation of harmful ground-level ozone. The projects in this year’s program are expected to reduce nitrogen oxide emissions by over eight tons annually.

“The Clean Diesel Program funds allow the department to provide financial assistance to reduce harmful diesel emissions across the state,” Macy said. “We received many more eligible applications than we had available funds, so this year we used a lottery to select the award recipients.”

Nebraska’s Clean Diesel Program is funded by an annual grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Applications for this year’s program were accepted from October 1 through December 15, 2022. More information on NDEE’s Clean Diesel Program can be found here: https://dee.nebraska.gov/aid/air-loans-grants-rebates/nebraska-clean-diesel-rebate-program.

Below is the list of 2022 Clean Diesel Rebate recipients: