Should fire trucks be pulled from parades to save gas?

With rising gas prices, Frederick County Commissioner John L. Thompson Jr. would like to stop county fire trucks from driving in community parades.

He brought up his suggestion as Frederick County Commissioners decided to budget an additional $700,000 to compensate for the rising prices.

"That would, to me, be a prime opportunity to reduce fuel consumption," Thompson said.

In a climate where everyone is cutting back, the county is no exception.

The commissioners decided to direct Management Services Division Director Austin Abraham to develop a fuel conservation policy for every department in the county, not just fire and rescue services.

"We do want to take out any extraneous use of county vehicles at any time," said Commissioners President Jan Gardner. "I really don't think we can afford it."

Frederick County uses $1.1 million gallons of fuel a year. It includes gasoline for dumptrucks, cruisers, fire trucks and snow plows. Fifty-six percent of the fuel is diesel.

The commissioners started the fuel contingency fund in the past five years to give them leeway if the cost of fuel changes dramatically throughout the year.

It was especially helpful when gas prices went to $3.60 per gallon after Hurricane Katrina, Thompson said.

Prior to adding the extra money to the contingency fund in fiscal 2009, the county had only budgeted enough money to cover fuel at $4 a gallon throughout the year.

With the extra $700,000, the commissioners can now afford to pay up to $4.50 a gallon.

Abraham plans to develop the policy and have County Manager Ron Hart review it by the end of next week.

After he completes the policy, Abraham will ask each department to develop conservation strategies and send them back for review. After he and Hart look at them, each department will adopt the strategies.

The implementation schedule has not been determined, but Abraham said it will have an impact by reducing fuel consumption during fiscal 2009 and hopefully alleviate the need for the contingency.

"We hope that it makes a difference right from the day we implement it," he said.

Copyright 2008 The Frederick News-Post. All rights reserved.