This coal- and gas-powered city could be going solar and sustainable.

		Graphic: The 10 least sunny cities in the United States

After fits and starts, Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl's administration is taking steps toward using alternative fuels in city vehicles, likely starting with garbage trucks. The city has also won a promise of federal funding for an effort to encourage the use of solar power within its borders.

The mayor on Tuesday said both efforts are part of an overall push to become a more environmentally friendly city.

Improvements, though, won't happen overnight.

It was December when the mayor rode into Heinz Field on a garbage truck, proclaiming his desire to convert the city's heavy vehicles to run on processed grease from the football palace's fryers.

It took until May 31 for the state to finalize a $303,675 grant to buy conversion kits for the trucks, to cover the cost of installing a storage tank for the so-called biodiesel fuel. City Council approved the acceptance of the state grant on Monday, clearing the way for the money to start flowing.

"Any time you convert, or look at trying to do something differently -- and certainly using biodiesel fuel is different from what we're used to in the past -- it takes time," Mr. Ravenstahl said. "Hopefully, at some point, we can convert our entire fleet over to biodiesel. That's going to take time. That's going to take investment."

If successful, it will buck a trend of failed city efforts to use less-polluting fuels. Some city vehicles, for instance, are emblazoned with the claim, "Powered by Clean Natural Gas," but there is no longer a pump in the city capable of delivering that fuel. A city effort to switch to hybrid sport utility vehicles has been slowed by the short supply of American-made hybrids. The city has a buy-American policy.

Next up is a solar power play. Last month the federal Department of Energy declared the city one of a dozen Solar America cities, giving it access to grants and expertise.

Mr. Ravenstahl acknowledged that the idea of using solar power in this often cloudy town might prompt snickers.

"We're not Phoenix, Ariz., but that doesn't prohibit us from in some ways using solar energy for, perhaps, government buildings and efficiencies in government," he said. "We're going to rely on the experts to deal with our climate and the elements we live with here in Pittsburgh as to how solar might work."

The city's successful grant application to the Department of Energy includes plenty of ideas.

The effort may start with solar-powered traffic lights. The private Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens may get a large set of solar panels, called a photovoltaic array, costing some $200,000. A rebuilt Frick Environmental Center could include a $125,000 photovoltaic array, shaving $1,885 a year from power bills, and reducing pollution emissions by some 19 tons a year.

The city may create a solar backup power system for essential services. It might work with International Union of Operating Engineers Local 95 to train solar installers and repairmen.

A just-conceptualized organization called the Pittsburgh Solar Initiative would create a rebate program for residents and businesses who install solar cells.

Federal, state, city and private money would combine to make a $30 million to $40 million investment through 2015.

The city's grant application was backed by letters of recommendation from government leaders, including Congressman Mike Doyle and Gov. Ed Rendell, as well as businesses, nonprofit organizations, universities, foundations and unions. The Pittsburgh Solar Initiative would reflect that by including city and state officials and representatives of the universities, Duquesne Light Co., Citizens for Pennsylvania's Future, Conservation Consultants Inc., the Green Building Alliance, local solar company Plextronics, and the International Union of Operating Engineers.

Mr. Ravenstahl said that climate change and sustainable power were hot topics at a U.S. Conference of Mayors meeting he attended in Los Angeles last month. "It's starting to slowly, but surely, become a reality in the city of Pittsburgh."