PITTSBORO - Learn about the exciting future and importance of non-gasoline-powered vehicles as Central Carolina Community College and the Triangle Clean Cities Coalition host Odyssey: National Alternative Fuel Vehicle Day on Oct. 18 at the college's Chatham County Campus.

Alternative fuel vehicles are the future of transportation, according to Andrew McMahan, director of the North Carolina Community College System's Energy Curriculum Improvement Project (CIP). He previously served as the college's biofuels coordinator, leading the development of its alternative fuels degree program, the first of its kind in the state.

"Alternative fuel vehicles offer greater fuel efficiency and clean emissions while reducing the use of fossil fuels that pollute the environment," he said.

Alternative fuel vehicles (AFVs) can be powered by electricity; biofuels made from renewable resources, such as biodiesel or ethanol; or cleaner gaseous fuels, such as compressed natural gas (CNG) or propane. As examples of the air quality benefits of alternative fuels, B99 (99 percent biodiesel) produces 60-90 percent less air toxics and 100 percent less sulfates than petroleum diesel; and CNG produces 70 percent less carbon monoxide and 100 percent less oxides of sulfur than gasoline.

Several AFVs will be on display at the event, with experts on hand to discuss them. The AFVs will include: Duke Energy's Chevy Volt plug-in gasoline-electric hybrid, Advanced Energy's Nissan Leaf plug-in electric vehicle, BuildSense CNG vehicle, Piedmont Biofuels biodiesel tanker truck, and CCCC's own biodiesel weatherization van and biodiesel farm tractor.

Odyssey runs 3 p.m.-6 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 18, at the Chatham Campus, 764 West St., Pittsboro. At 3 p.m., a panel of experts in the field will discuss "The State of Alternative Fuels in the Greater Triangle Region."

Panel members will be Lacey Jane Wolfe, coordinator of the Triangle Clean Cities Coalition; Jeff Andre, a partner and operations lead of BuildSense; Rachel Burton, director of Piedmont Biofuels' Research and Analytics Department; and Mike Waters, director of Electric Transportation and Grid Modernization for Duke Energy.

A ribbon cutting for the college's new electric vehicle charging stations takes place from 4 p.m.-4:30 p.m. Representatives from Duke Energy, CCCC's partner in bringing the charging stations to the campus, as well as local officials, will take part.

Guided tours of the college's innovative green facilities, including its Sustainability Center, which has a living roof, will be given between 4:30 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. Hors d'oeuvres will be served during the tour.

"We invite everyone to come out and learn why alternative fuel vehicles are important in reducing mankind's carbon footprint on the Earth," said Laura Lauffer, CCCC's Sustainability coordinator. "I believe visitors will find the quality, efficiency and eye-appeal of these cutting-edge vehicles exciting. They will also enjoy seeing that their community college is a leader in the greening of America."

For more information, see the announcement at www.cccc.edu. For more information about CCCC's sustainability programs, visit www.cccc.edu/green/.

The Triangle Clean Cities Coalition, housed at Triangle J Council of Governments, is a public-private partnership dedicated to reducing petroleum dependence in the Greater Triangle Area. The region is a leader in green vehicle fleet efforts and sustainability, displacing over 5 million gallons of petroleum in the past four years. For more about Triangle Clean Cities Coalition, go to www.trianglecleancities.org.

The Triangle J Council of Governments is a coalition that promotes collaboration among local governments, stakeholders and partners to tackle challenges that cross jurisdictional lines. The TJCOG includes Chatham, Lee, Johnston, Moore, Orange, Durham and Wake counties.

The Odyssey event at CCCC-Pittsboro is one of hundreds that will take place across the country on Oct. 18. The national celebration is developed and coordinated by the National Alternative Fuels Training Consortium (NAFTC), a program of West Virginia University. Since 2002, the biennial Odyssey events have grown tremendously in size and impact. In 2010, more than 230,000 people attended Odyssey events at 131 participating locations. To learn about Odyssey Day around the nation, visit afvdayodyssey.org.

Odyssey 2012 is partially funded by the Advanced Electric Drive Vehicle Education Program, an American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) grant through the U.S. Department of Energy.