The San Diego region’s green transportation economy is growing and attracting awards and grants in the process. Earlier this month, San Diego International Airport was named a 2023 Airports Council International – North America Environmental Achievement Award winner for its adoption of renewable diesel for vehicles and equipment on the airside.
Renewable diesel is made from vegetable oil, animal fats, and agricultural waste and reduces fuel emissions by up to 75% compared to petroleum diesel. The airport announced the program in April in cooperation with airline fuel consortium SAN Fuel Company and airport logistics giant Menzies Aviation.
“This partnership is a great example of collaboration between the airport and its airline business partners and it provides a model for others to replicate,” said Scott Carrington, fuel category manager at Southwest Airlines and chair of the SAN Fuel Company.
Rail travel in and out of San Diego was also made greener this month with the Los Angeles – San Diego – San Luis Obispo Rail Corridor Agency announcing it too was adopting renewable diesel fuel for its Amtrak Pacific Surfliner service.
Green travel by school bus was also given a boost by a $1.9 million grant from the California Energy Commission to San Diego vehicle-to-grid technology company Nuvve Holding Corp. The CEC grant will fund Nuvve’s RESCHOOL: Resilient Energy Solutions for Schools project, which demonstrates how Nuvve’s technology allows batteries in EV school busses to be utilized as backup energy for power grids.
Initially, the project will benefit Cajon Valley Union School District and San Diego Unified, which are already equipped with Nuvve’s bidirectional chargers, and will later expand to other school districts in the state.
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The San Diego Business Journal is celebrating awards of its own this week, via veteran reporter Ray Huard who took home five San Diego Press Club Excellence in Journalism Awards. This year marked the Press Club’s 50th annual awards ceremony.
Huard swept the entire Real Estate category for non-daily newspapers, taking first place for his coverage of the Horton Plaza redevelopment project; second place for his article on the transformative impact of San Diego International Airport’s $2.78 billion Terminal 1 project; and third place for a piece on UC San Diego’s plans for a new Central Hub.
Huard also took home first place in the non-daily Business & Financial category for a story on San Diego bridge loan specialist Fidelis Private Fund; and second place in the Health & Medicine category for his coverage of Aya Healthcare’s partnership with UC San Diego Health to address nursing shortages.
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The Del Mar Country Club Golf Tournament and Dinner-Gala was held Oct. 7, raising $1.4 million for the SOF Support Foundation, which provides financial, mental health and transition services to our country’s special operations forces. Honored guests at the event included Vice Admiral, U.S. Navy SEAL Collin Green and Chief Warrant Officer 2 Nick Lavery, who spoke to the need of supporting special forces in the face of growing terrorism threats, including the weekend’s attack on Israel by Hamas militants.
Del Mar Country Club CEO and SOF Support Chair Dominique Plewes also addressed he attack, describing it as a “ stark reminder that the war against terrorism is ongoing and that our special operators must constantly stay on the ready during these challenging and uncertain times.”
