B20 Club welcomes Naperville Park District as a new member

Naperville Park District recently was accepted into membership in the B20 Club, which is a partnership between the Illinois Soybean Association and the American Lung Association that recognizes Illinois organizations with a strong commitment to the use of biodiesel fuel blends of 20% or greater.

Currently, Naperville Park District is one of only two Illinois park districts to be accepted into membership. Located in both DuPage and Will counties, Naperville Park District works to preserve and promote a clean, healthy, sustainable environment through a variety of initiatives and best practices.

The park district's fleet has been designated as an Illinois Green Fleet by the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency and Illinois Alliance for Clean Transportation (formerly Chicago Area Clean Cities) since 2014, running on a diverse mix of alternative fuels, with B20 biodiesel, propane, hybrid and all-electric vehicles and equipment.

"The B20 Club of Illinois represents a select group of more than 22 fleet members that have made a commitment to combat climate change and protect human health by reducing their carbon footprint and lowering tailpipe emissions with drop-in biodiesel blends," said Bailey Arnold, program lead for the B20 Club of Illinois and director of clean air initiatives for the American Lung Association. "Our members have used more than 85.5 million gallons of B20 and higher biodiesel blends in nearly 5,000 fleet vehicles, reducing carbon emissions equivalent to planting more than 2.7 million trees, and providing an estimated health savings benefit of more than $16.5 million to local communities since 2014."

"The Naperville Park District manages more than 2,400 acres of park land in Naperville, the 4th largest city in Illinois," said Brad Wilson, executive director. "Stewardship of the environment has long been one of the district's core values. The use of B20 allows us to reduce emissions while improving the performance of our diesel equipment."

"The Illinois Soybean Association is excited to welcome the Naperville Park District to the B20 Club," said Ron Kindred, ISA vice chairman. "With this new partnership, we can continue to reduce carbon emissions across our state by using a more efficient, cleaner fuel, grown right here in Illinois."

Some of the benefits of membership in the B20 Club include partnership opportunities, webinars, competitive grants, promotions, fuel quality, technical services and training.