January 16, 2024 |
Photo – Volkswagen emblem – Courtesy classaction.com
Hanna officials debate whether to allow Volkswagen to replace the town’s diesel-powered public works truck.
In 2015, vehicle manufacturer Volkswagen was accused of using software to alter the emissions their diesel engines produced. The software, also known as a defeat device, could sense when an emissions test was being performed and change the way the engine functioned to improve results.
The following year, in 2016, Volkswagen was forced to pay over $4 billion in fines and penalties by the federal government. A portion of the payout has been allocated to the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality to replace municipalities’ diesel-powered work trucks.
During the January 9th Hanna town council meeting, Mayor Jon Ostling said DEQ was offering to buy the town a new large public works truck using the Volkswagen settlement money. Mayor Ostling said the new truck would take the place of an older less efficient model currently being used by the town.
Councilman Sam Sikes asked is they were required to have the existing truck replaced with an electric variant. Mayor Ostling said an electric truck is not the best option for Hanna. The mayor said the council can select from several different options, none of which require the town to contribute any money.
Treasurer Ann Calvert said the town’s public works plow truck will run, but the attached diesel exhaust fluid, or DEF, unit causes a lot of problems. Mayor Ostling said he told Public Works Director Larry Korkow to eliminate the DEF unit if he isn’t able to resolve the problems.
Councilman Roger Hawks asked if the town could keep the old truck if they chose to take advantage of the Volkswagen settlement. Treasurer Calvert said the old vehicle would need to be destroyed.
Treasurer Calvert said the town would have to forfeit whichever vehicle they chose to have replaced. Calvert used the town’s older orange work truck, referred to as pumpkin, as an example. The town treasurer said the DEF units on newer diesel engines have a history of complications.
Calvert said DEQ is offering the Volkswagen settlement money to take old, less efficient, diesel-powered vehicles off the road, including installing new engines with upgraded emissions equipment. The town treasurer said the existing truck must be destroyed.
Mayor Ostling said the town has until the end of January to accept DEQ’s offer. The council chose not to take any action during the January 9th meeting until more information can be gathered about the make and model of the replacement truck to ensure it can be serviced locally.
