Miss Christi Gets Green

The USC Wrigley Institute is improving the fuel efficiency of its vessel, Miss Christi, with the help of a substantial state grant from the California Air Resources Board and the Southern California Air Quality Management District.

Funding for the project came from the Carl Moyer Program, a voluntary grant program that reduces air pollution from vehicles and equipment by providing incentive funds for purchasing cleaner-than-required engines, equipment and emission reduction technologies. Started in 1998, the program is named after the late Carl Moyer (1937-97), an environmental consultant who worked on innovative programs to improve California’s air quality.

Captain Gordon Boivin in the engine room of the USC vessel Miss Christi.

“We completed the grant application last year,” said Gordon Boivin, captain of Miss Christi and marine operations manager for the USC Wrigley Institute for Environmental Studies, housed in USC Dornsife. “We showed how much we use the boat, the demand of our busy schedule and the route we take and our direct fuel costs, and we were awarded approximately $200,000 for the upgrades.”

The upgrades will switch the Miss Christi from Tier 2 engines to more efficient Tier 3 engines, and that will reduce emissions and improve fuel efficiency during the vessel’s daily cross-channel trips. The replacement of the two 450-horsepower engines, along with upgrades to engine controls and transmissions, will be completed by mid-January 2015.

Read more about the Carl Moyer Memorial Air Quality Standards Attainment Program.