Michael Leavitt, EPA administrator at the time, presented Schneider National and 14 other charter partners with awards in recognition of their participation in the voluntary initiative aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
By 2012, the Partnership aims to reduce from the environment as much as 18 million metric tons of carbon equivalent, and up to 200,000 tons of nitrogen oxides (NOx) annually. These reductions would result from an annual fuel savings of up to 150 million barrels of oil.
At the time of the award, Dennis Damman, Schneider’s director of engineering, said, “Schneider National actively supports environmental programs to reduce emissions by specifying equipment that minimizes environmental impact. Driver programs support reduced idle time and improved fuel economy. While our idle times are among the lowest in the truckload industry, we actively seek continuous improvement in this area. As a responsible member of the communities in which we operate, we view the SmartWay Transport Partnership as an integral part of our operations.”
And as the young folks say, “They’ve done good!” Through the program, the EPA is now working with more than 600 businesses to improve both their bottom line and the environment by offering technical assistance, tools for evaluating opportunities to lower fuel use and emissions and help in locating financing for the purchase of fuel-saving equipment and technology.
And Schneider continues to actively support the SmartWay Program. Damman says, “I really like that SmartWay is a voluntary program. It’s not a mandated emissions reduction program, and it recognizes members for spec’ing trucks to reduce emissions. As a fleet, we were already doing many of the initiatives the program was built around. SmartWay continues to be a natural fit for us because we have demonstrated a number of emission-reducing initiatives and have had a focus on that for a long time.
“We like the fact that SmartWay shares a lot of information with its members, and over the last few years, it’s getting a lot of visibility with our customers. They ask us what our SmartWay initiatives are and what we’re doing about further reducing our carbon footprint.”
Easy questions for Schneider, since the fleet has a lot to talk about and, as Damman says, “SmartWay recognizes performance.” Recently, the fleet was awarded, for the second consecutive year, the Partnership’s Environmental Excellence Award for demonstrating leadership in conserving energy and lowering greenhouse gas emissions from its transportation and freight activities.
In accepting the award, Damman said, “Schneider’s internal programs for specifying components, operating procedures, fuel control and driver training lead the trucking industry in environmental practices; yet we’re constantly looking for new and better ways to lessen our impact on the environment. We’re extremely proud to be recognized for two years in a row.”
SmartWay’s 600 members — carriers, shippers, logistic companies, rail carriers and affiliates — are conserving more than 600 million gallons of diesel fuel per year, saving the trucking industry nearly $2 billion in annual costs and eliminating nearly seven million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions that contribute to global warming. Let me suggest that you consider becoming a SmartWay partner. For more information about the SmartWay Program go to www.epa.gov/smartway.
