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10/20/11 (AEIN) The U.S. federal government's Environmental Protection Agency has issued fifty million dollars in new grants to curtail air pollution produced by diesel engines. This will help reduce asthma attacks and other health effects caused by such emissions, according to a statement issued by the EPA on Thursday.
The grants will pay to retrofit or replace over eight thousand diesel engines in ships, trucks, buses and train locomotives. In addition to reducing pollution, these projects create job opportunities and help maintain existing employment. All fifty states and some U.S. territories will receive such grants from the agency.
EPA figures indicate that it funded the reduction of emissions in over 50 thousand diesel-powered machines during 2008, 2009 and 2010. The Information Please Almanac states that the diesel engine is a German invention, patented in 1892. Its use remains widespread in the U.S., particularly in large vehicles and luxury automobiles.