Making an early transition to cleaner-burning vehicles is an absolute essential for Southern California to meet federal clean air standards in a fair and expedited manner. In a populous region experiencing significant impacts from vehicle operations, the operation of low-emission vehicles will significantly reduce the health risk imposed on residents by mobile source pollutants in the form of ozone precursors, air toxics, and fine particulates.

The California Natural Gas Vehicle (NGV) Partnership is an alliance of state and federal air quality, transportation and energy agencies, together with vehicle and engine manufacturers, fuel providers, transit and refuse hauler associations, and other interested stakeholders. The Partnership seeks to encourage high level policymakers from around the nation to share knowledge, plan joint projects, and discuss issues such as the role of natural gas to address national energy policies, the potential of natural gas to strengthen national fuel security, and the expansion of engine and vehicle platform development to meet future tougher engine emission standards.

Specifically, the California NGV Partnership will be seeking to increase and strengthen the deployment of low-emission NGVs throughout California, as a strategy transferable to many other major metropolitan regions. The Partnership will also be seeking to use the natural gas vehicle as a platform to launch the eventual deployment of zero-emission fuel cell vehicles in a timely, cost-effective manner.
 

With the rising cost of petroleum-based gasoline and diesel fuel, tougher emission standards and the growing public demand for better environmental policies, natural gas vehicles provide an attractive alternative with
a multitude of key advantages.

The future envisioned by the California NGV Partnership is one in which clean transportation is widely accepted and supported. Initiating our efforts in California, we are helping to deliver the promise of NGVs by promoting the research and development, demonstration and deployment, accessibility and commercializing, and legislative support for NGVs. The success of our efforts in California will serve as a model for low-emission, alternative fuel initiatives in metropolitan areas across the country. And the infrastructure and technologies we develop today will provide a bridge to even cleaner transportation tomorrow.