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- Four Great Reasons to Choose an NGV:
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- Savings
- Cleaner Air
- Safety
- Convenience
Savings
- The Fuel Savings Add Up for You or your Business
- NGVs are less expensive to operate than traditional gasoline powered vehicles. You can save
between 20% to 40% using NGV in Ontario.
- Natural gas, unlike liquid fuels, cannot be siphoned from a vehicle. Fuel theft
is an on-going concern of fleet managers.
- Lower Maintenance Costs Because Its Cleaner Burning
- Due to the fact that natural gas burns cleaner than most other fuels, maintenance costs are often
less. Vehicle and underhood components such as spark plugs, the exhaust system, and engine oil
stay cleaner while operating on natural gas.
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Cleaner Air - The Health Cost of Poor Air in Ontario
An air pollution study conducted in Toronto in the year 2000 revealed that there are about 1,000 premature deaths and about 5,500 hospitalizations per year due to poor air quality in the city. The study, conducted by the City of Toronto Community and Neighbourhood Services, Toronto Public Health - Health Promotion and Environmental Protection Office, also estimates that these health impacts involve about $10 billion in annual economic damage.
In addition to estimating the total air pollution burden of illness, the study sought to access the relative importance of each of Toronto's critical air pollutants in contributing to ill health. The following table illustrates those findings as approximate numbers.
| Pollutant | Number of people with adverse health outcome |
| non-traumatic mortality |
respiratory hospital admissions |
cardiac hospital admissions |
congestive heart failure in elderly |
| PM10 |
226 |
555 |
812 |
- |
| SO4 |
119 |
170 |
169 |
- |
| CO |
441 |
- |
274 |
439 |
| NO2 |
511 |
1,234 |
2,207 |
- |
| SO2 |
119 |
172 |
- |
- |
| O3 |
59 |
199 |
2,155 |
- |
Total (using PM10 but not SO4) |
1,366 |
2,160 |
5,448 |
- |
This summary suggests that in Toronto, nitrogen dioxide (NO2) has the greatest adverse impact on human health despite the fact that NO2 levels are many times lower than the air quality criterion. Carbon monoxide was the second worst offender and has been linked to cardiac admission to hospital, most probably related to congestive heart failure in persons 65 or older. The transportation sector is the major cause of both nitrogen dioxide and carbon dioxide.
Although Toronto's sulphur dioxide levels are well below Ontario's air quality criteria, it still contributes highly to mortality in the city.
This study helps to illustrate that there are no safe levels of the most common air pollutants as even lower than recommended levels have adverse health effects. To further improve Ontario's air quality, standards must be continually reviewed and efforts made to encourage use of low emission technologies like natural gas vehicles.
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Safety
NGVs are as safe or safer than any gasoline-powered
vehicle. There are over one million NGVs in use around the world, and without one fatality attributable to
natural gas, the safety record is unblemished.
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NGV Vehicle Cylinder Inspection
- Natural gas powered vehicles store natural gas in specially constructed
cylinders on the vehicle. To ensure the continued safe operation of the
vehicle, the cylinders must be periodically inspected. It is the
responsibility of the owner of the cylinder to ensure that cylinders
are inspected regularly.
- The inspection that the cylinder requires depends upon the manufacturer's specifications.
Some cylinders require a visual inspection every three or five years while others must be removed from the vehicle and hydrostatically tested every five years.
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- Lighter Than Air
- Unlike gasoline vapours, natural gas does not settle in low-lying areas. So, in the unlikely event of
a leak, natural gas rises and dissipates rapidly in the air.
For this reason, natural gas vehicles are permitted to park underground.
- Fuel Storage
- The NGV fuel storage system is made of forged and stainless steel. The strength of the NGV fuel
storage system allows it to withstand crashes and heat much better than a standard gasoline tank and
fuel system. On the Ford factory-built NGV, each NGV tank is equipped with a solenoid valve that
automatically closes in the event of a collision.
- A Motor Fuel Since the 1930's
- Natural gas has been used as a motor fuel for more than 70 years worldwide and, according to the
US Gas Research Institute, there have been no fatalities, burn accidents or serious injuries related to
the use of natural gas in more than 430 million vehicle-miles of use.
- Higher Ignition Temperature and Limited Flammability
- Natural gas has a higher ignition point than gasoline or propane and a very narrow range of
flammability, making it less likely to ignite accidentally.
- Spills
- Because natural gas is non-toxic, non-carcinogenic and non-corrosive, there is no threat to land
or water in the event of a spill.
- Odorized
- In its pure state, natural gas is tasteless, colourless and odourless. As a safety measure an
odorant called mercaptin is added so that any leak can be detected easily.
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Convenience
- Convenient Refuelling
- Filling up with natural gas is virtually the same as filling up with gasoline. You drive up to the
pump (which looks very similar to a gasoline pump), fill up your tank using a nozzle, and in a few
minutes you're on the road again. Unlike propane, natural gas can be self serve.
- Because of technological advances in the development of on-site refuelling devices, stations
can be located almost anywhere that natural gas can be piped. This greatly increases availability
and convenience.
- With compressed natural gas, no trucks, tankers, or rail cars are necessary to get natural
gas around the country. Instead, natural gas is delivered safely and quietly by underground pipe
directly to your fleet, and is available 24 hours a day.
Natural gas stations
can be located anywhere natural gas can be piped.
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