TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The University of Alabama-sponsored Project ROSE (Recycled Oil Saves Energy) now has at least one used motor oil collection location in all 67 Alabama counties.

“This has truly been a grassroots effort. We appreciate elected community officials and business owners who stepped up to make this rural tank-placement program a success,” said Sheri Powell, coordinator for Project ROSE.

Project ROSE is one of the first volunteer used motor oil public outreach and education programs in the United States, and it is funded by the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs, Science, Technology, and Energy Division. Dr. Gary C. April, professor and head of UA’s chemical engineering department, founded the program in 1977. Project ROSE began with two 55-gallon drums placed at a pair of service stations in Tuscaloosa and Mobile.

Today, Project ROSE coordinates with more than 500 volunteer used motor oil collection sites throughout the state. A collection site list can be located at the Project ROSE Web site (www.eng.ua.edu/~prose) or by calling 1-800-CLEANUP.

“Used motor oil is very dangerous to the environment,” said Powell. “One gallon of used oil from a single oil change can contaminate millions of gallons of fresh water. It is insoluble and slow to degrade.”

At the beginning of this year, 13 rural counties did not have used oil collection locations for do-it-yourself oil changers. These counties were targeted to place 275-gallon tanks purchased with proceeds from the annual “Run for the Roses” 5k race. Since the premiere race began six years ago, 45 tanks have been purchased and placed in rural communities throughout the state.

“This would not have been possible had it not been for the runners and sponsors who support the race,” said Powell. The next race is scheduled for March 6, 2004, in Tuscaloosa.

Project ROSE’s comprehensive approach to used oil recycling has received national recognition. The United States Environmental Protection Agency based its “How to Set Up A Local Program to Recycle Used Oil” booklet on the Project ROSE model, calling the program “one of the country’s most successful organized promoters.” The program received the 2002 “Best Community Environmental Education Project” from the Environmental Education Association of Alabama.

For more information about Project ROSE, visit the Web site or call toll free at 1-800-452-5901.

In 1837, UA became the first university in the state to offer engineering classes and was one of the first five in the nation to do so. Today, the College of Engineering, with about 1,900 students and more than 90 faculty, is one of the three oldest continuously operating engineering programs in the country and has been fully accredited since accreditation standards were implemented in the 1930s.