By Lena Babaeva Coradini

The city of Clarksville, Tenn. is looking for cost-savings from a new biodiesel processing system.  Funded with a federal grant, the new system will enable Clarksville Gas and Water to convert cooking oil into biodiesel, which the city hopes to use to power its buses.

"It's a win-win," said Stan Williams at the Regional Planning Commission. "You're not only saving the environment, but you're saving money on fuel and keeping (grease) out of your sewer system."

Tommy Williams, a supervisor at the city's wastewater plant, said that latter item was the biggest benefit.

"We're taking oil that would normally wind up in our sewer lines, and we're converting that into a product that's a whole lot better for our environment than diesel," he said.

Since the unit was installed in December, CGW has converted a few hundred gallons of oil into diesel, relying primarily on donations from restaurants. Tommy Williams said the biodiesel was being used in equipment around the wastewater plant, at first, but the city plans to expand the program for use in buses and other vehicles, to take advantage of the fuel savings.

"We think that we're procuring this product for about $0.92 to $0.95 a gallon," Tommy Williams said. "That's, of course, very much lower than diesel," which is nearing $2.80 a gallon in Clarksville.

The machinery cost only $29,000, which the city bought with the $45,000 federal grant.

Thank you to Erica Garrison for the suggested entry.