Republic Services, which operates a fleet of more than 2,500 compressed natural gas (CNG) vehicles and 38 natural gas fueling stations, has announced that it will increase its usage of renewable natural gas (RNG) by three times what it used in 2016 and reduce its fleet emissions by approximately 110,000 metric tons of CO2e (carbon dioxide equivalent) over a three-year period through an expanded agreement with Clean Energy.

To ramp up its usage of RNG, Republic will utilize Clean Energy’s Redeem brand of RNG in its CNG fleet in 20 states. Redeem is derived from biogenic methane or biogas, which is methane generated by the decomposition of organic waste in landfills or digesters. The methane gas is then processed, purified and sent into the interstate natural gas pipeline and made commercially available to Clean Energy customers.

"As the operator of the eighth largest vocational fleet in the country, we have a number of initiatives to reduce overall fuel usage, including our continued commitment to operating CNG-powered trucks," said Republic Services Vice President of Recycling and Sustainability Pete Keller in a statement. "We are committed to keeping our planet clean, and work hard every day to decrease vehicle emissions across our fleet through intelligent routing, our One Fleet maintenance initiative, and the use of renewable fuels. Together, these initiatives will help us to reach our goals of reducing fleet greenhouse gas emissions."

This effort of increasing RNG fuel usage goes hand-in-hand with Republic’s goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 3 percent by 2018 and Blue Planet sustainability initiative, which aims to further improve the company’s environmental and social impacts through decreased vehicle emissions, innovative landfill technologies, use of renewable energy, community engagement and employee growth opportunities.