State and Federal programs have helped hundreds of fishermen upgrade to Tier III engines. Lynne Cayting, Mobile Sources Section Chief at Maine’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), has been helping fishermen and other vessel operators in Maine repower with more environmentally friendly engines since 2009. “Since the Maine Clean Marine Engine Program started, we’ve helped put new engines in hundreds of lobster boats,” says Cayting, referring to the federally funded DERA (Diesel EmissiFons Reduction Act) program that enables the DEP to pay as much as 40 percent of the cost of a new engine and installation.
“Some years, we spend over a million dollars,” she says. “That is DERA money and VW money.” The VW money Cayting refers to comes from a settlement Volkswagen made with the U.S. after the German company was found to have falsified emissions data. “Each state received a certain amount of the settlement based on the number of registered Volkswagens,” says Cayting. “And we use the VW money to leverage more DERA funding.”
According to Cayting, fishermen are permitted to increase their engine horsepower by 20 percent, and they have to work through a boatyard. “There’s no application you can access online,” says Cayting. “The boat shops have the applications. If someone wishes to participate, they need a yard to certify that the engine has three years of remaining useful life. If an engine is beyond its useful life with high hours, it’s not eligible—unless it’s been rebuilt.” Cayting notes that the amount of funding available for repowering projects depends on the emission reductions from the project, which factors in how much fuel the boat has been burning. “We ask for fuel receipts, the more fuel a fisherman has consumed, the more funding we can provide, up to 40 percent, and that includes the entire system, new fuel lines, and other materials related to the engine.
If a vessel’s engine is worn out, or the fishermen aren’t fishing hard and burning fuel, they likely won’t qualify. “The government needs to get the most bang for its buck,” says Cayting. We can’t fund projects that really won’t make a difference in overall emission reductions.
When it comes to engines, Cayting notes that the choices vary with the fishermen's needs and preferences. “Lately, we’ve seen a lot of Scanias and FPTs,” she says. It used to be more Cummins and Cats on the bigger boats. Usually, the fishermen work it out with the yard.”
Checking her numbers, Cayting reports that the program has put $6.7 million into helping fishermen repower with clean engines. This program has numerous benefits, including a 45% reduction in NOx of 97.8 tons/year, and economic stimulus in rural communities by potentially creating and retaining jobs for engine distributors, dealers and boatyards, and fishermen and their co-ops. “We repowered some larger vessels, including the midwater trawler, the Providian, in 2012,” Cayting says. “Out of 180 projects, the majority have been fishing vessels. Actually, we’re starting to see repeats. A boat that was repowered to Tier II, which was the requirement in 2009, is now ready to go to Tier III.”
Maine is not the only state with a program to get the dirtiest engines out of the fleet. California launched its state-funded Carl Moyer program in 1998 with the goal of bringing diesel engines on land and water up to standards that exceed those of the EPA. “The Moyer Program has funded 509 commercial fishing projects over the last 25 years. More than 150 commercial fishing projects have been funded in the last decade alone,” says Lynda Lambert, Public Information Officer II at California Air Resources Board (CARB). “A project can be funded anywhere between 50 and 85 percent of the eligible costs. New zero-emission commercial fishing vessels and repowers of existing commercial fishing vessels can also receive funding through CARB’s Clean Off-Road Voucher Incentive Project, CORE.”
CARB’s Commercial Harbor Craft regulation, which applies to various types of vessels, including commercial fishing vessels, is expected to result in an 89% reduction in diesel black particulate matter and a 52% reduction in NOx by 2035. In 2022, the state allocated $60 million to help vessels comply. “To date, one zero-emission fishing vessel project was preliminarily selected for grant funding,” says Lambert.
The program is helping engine suppliers out of state as well. According to Tim Sandeman, Vice President of Sales at Seattle’s Cascade Engine Center, Cascade has shipped a number of John Deere and Scania engines to California for state-supported fishing vessel repower projects. “We’re not directly involved,” says Sandeman. “We sell through our dealers there. We sold quite a few in 2022 and 2023, not as many this year.” Sandeman notes that the market is subdued on the West Coast, and manufacturers are focused on moving their established products. “Last year in Bristol Bay was bad,” says Sandeman. “Good for fish, but bad for price, so there’s not a lot of boat building going on.”
According to Sandeman, the boats being built keep their engines below 800 horsepower. Lambert, in California, points out that the state programs don’t allow for any horsepower increase. With the Tier IV regulatory relief extended and likely to continue, there is little call for Tier IV from the West Coast fishing industry.
“I haven’t heard of looking at Tier IV for fishing vessels,” Sandeman says, noting that MAN is currently the only manufacturer with an after-treatment system compact enough for consideration.
Emissions standards for fishing vessels are expected to become more stringent as states and the Federal Government strive to control dangerous pollutants. Fortunately, programs like those in Maine, California, and other states can help with the cost of an upgrade.
