By Jason Klaiber
Staff Writer
The Village of Minoa recently purchased a dual-fuel pickup truck for its wastewater treatment plant.
Used for checking on pump stations and attending to problems with residents’ sewer lines, the Ford F-350 XLT runs on both gasoline and compressed natural gas (CNG).
“The pickup truck is hugely successful,” Steve Giarrusso, the supervisor at the treatment plant, said. “It’s extremely efficient. We always look at not just the next generation but two or three generations down the road. We look at zero emissions.”
Minoa Mayor Bill Brazill said the decision to purchase the truck falls in line with the village’s intention to remain a community based around “clean energy.”
“We wanted to make sure we stay with that theme,” Brazill said. “We needed a new pickup down there, so this is what we went with. It’s revolutionary, really, the way it’s built.”
In 2012, the village had bought a truck designed to run solely on CNG, similar to a number of Centro buses.
Giarrusso said, however, that the village has a “slow” fill station that would require eight to ten hours to entirely refill the CNG truck, making said motor vehicle “impractical.”
The dual-fuel truck allows the driver to flip a switch from CNG usage to regular gasoline or alternatively wait until the CNG runs out, at which point the truck will automatically switch to regular gas.
Giarrusso, a research biologist, also recently wrapped up his time as supervisor at an official capacity last week after more than 20 years with the village’s wastewater treatment plant.
He said he hopes the municipality’s “going green” initiatives will continue into his retirement years.
“Steve’s done tremendous, from the time he came in to where we are now,” Brazill said.
