Truck in the Park Biodiesel Demonstration The Department of
Environmental Quality (DEQ) spearheaded a project to demonstrate
biodiesel use in Yellowstone National Park (YNP). With
visitation increasing yearly, there is a need for more efficient
transportation, such as buses, and reduced pollution, odors, and
smoke caused by tourism transportation. Biodiesel is any plant
oil or animal fat that is processed with an alcohol to make the
methyl or ethyl esters of the oil useable in current production
diesel engines. Yellowstone offered the opportunity to
demonstrate this low emission, biodegradable fuel in an
environmentally sensitive and extremely cold area. Such areas
may prove to be a near-term niche market for this and similar
bio-based fuels. Locally produced rapeseed ethyl ester (REE)
could be part of the remedy to reduce pollution generated by
diesel-powered vehicles in Yellowstone. For this project,
biodiesel was produced from off-spec rapeseed oil reacted with
ethanol that is made from potato waste genera