Cranking up the air conditioning and radio may not seem bad, but idling vehicles create a variety of problems, from emitting unnecessary greenhouse gases to premature wear and tear on the vehicle, said Garrison Mobile Equipment officials. (Photo illustration by Lance Cpl. J Nava).

As Marine Corps Base Camp Butler has more than 1,200 government-owned vehicles in its fleet, that is a substantially higher bill, said Thomas Ramer, GME operations officer.

In an effort to save money and curb the waste of fuel, Garrison Mobile Equipment is asking government vehicle drivers to not idle their engines.

"We idle for convenience," said Ramer. "We keep the vehicle on just so we can have air conditioning and the radio on. What we're really doing is locally hurting the environment and hurting operating costs."

GOVs use internal combustion engines which emit carbon dioxide and other noxious gases when in use, Ramer explained. A vehicle still produces greenhouse gases when it's not in motion.

"We want to help preserve the environment so that future generations can enjoy it as well," said Yoshi Makiyama, a GME administrative specialist from the Tokushima prefecture on mainland Japan.

Idling a vehicle for any amount of time produces unnecessary carbon dioxide emissions, wastes fuel and creates unnecessary wear and tear on the engine, said Ramer. Idling a vehicle leaves fuel residue and condensed waste on vital engine and exhaust components, causing premature oil and engine deterioration.

GOVs are not the only vehicles that can cause problems by idling; privately-owned vehicles are subject to the same negative effects, Ramer said.

Damage to vehicles, the environment and checkbooks can be easily prevented by simply turning a vehicle off when not in use and asking others do the same, Ramer said.

"What we need is concerned citizens who are willing to say something when they see an idled vehicle," Ramer added.

GME is actively searching for new solutions or innovative ideas to solve these problems. GME can be contacted by visiting www.mcb.usmc.mil and clicking on the GME link.