POUGHKEEPSIE – Attorney General Andrew Cuomo Tuesday announced he has secured $500,000 to fund clean air projects in Westchester, Putnam and Dutchess counties as a result of a federal Clean Air Act settlement.

The funds are part of a $9.5 million settlement his office reached with American Electric Power, the nation’s largest power company.

Projects in those counties will receive funds to reduce diesel air pollution emissions from idling trucks at rest stops or weigh stations, through a process called truck stop electrification.

Other potential projects to be funded may include construction of ‘green’ buildings, installing solar and other renewable energy systems, purchasing clean-air school buses and other vehicles, and investing in energy efficiency and conservation programs.