Islip test drives biodegradable motor oil

Islip Town has given the go-ahead for a trial of biodegradable motor vehicle engine oil that, if successful, could lead to switching the town's entire fleet.

Warren Goercke, deputy commissioner for the town's public works department, said motor oil would be drained from two town cars, their filters changed and the oil replaced with an American-made product derived from plant and animal fats.

"It's the right thing to do," Goercke said of the non-petroleum-based oil. "It reduces the demands on the environment, the town's overall carbon footprint and reduces demand for foreign oil. If we can make the product here in the U.S. and it works in our fleet, why not use that?"

Last month, the town agreed that beginning Jan. 1 all chain saws and other hand tools used for town work would operate on only biodegradable oil.

Both initiatives are from outgoing Councilman John Edwards, who has brought a raft of environmentally friendly measures to the town during his four-year term. Among other measures, he's overseen the introduction of green building standards, worked to change street lighting to energy-efficient induction lamps, and helped Islip become the first town on Long Island to allow residential wind turbines.

Goercke said the town was mindful that motor oil from town vehicles could leak and drip, and that they would be contributing to "yet another petroleum product that may flow into our basin drains," where it can end up in groundwater or the Great South Bay.

"When you're dealing with petroleum products, it's not an infinite resource -- with plant and animal oils, it's renewable, we can grow them and have an ongoing resource," he said.

The town's fleet is made up of 62 private passenger cars -- primarily Ford Focus and Taurus sedans -- 129 pickup trucks and 111 SUVs and vans.

Goercke said that after six months of trials using the 5W-30-weight oil, which is certified by the Society of Automotive Engineers and approved for gasoline engines, the town would review the two cars' performance and consider switching more vehicles.

"If it works well and is cost-effective, we would certainly look to transferring the town's entire fleet," he said.