ELECTRIC VEHICLES ARE GOOD FOR YOUR WORLD

This is the 4th in a wonderful series about Electric Vehicles [EVs] from Bagatelle-Black and EV World. (The 1st three: I: A Tale of Two Hybrids, II: An Electric Vehicle Primer, III: Why Drive Electric?)

Bagatelle-Black ends with this important caution: “The oil industry has unimaginable amounts of money at its disposal. When they spend a tiny portion of their profits trying to create the illusion that EVs are just as bad for the environment as [Internal Combustion Engine]-powered cars, countless media outlets pick up their stories. When they try to discredit the scientific community’s conclusion that our cars are dangerously warming the globe, millions of people take them seriously. It is up to every person who cares about our planet to counter these misinformation campaigns. It is up to you to spread the truth about EVs to people who have been inundated by oil industry propaganda…”

Electric Vehicles and the Environment
Forbes Bagatelle-Black, November 27, 2007 (EV World)

WHO
Forbes Bagatelle-Black, engineer and EV enthusiast; Drivers concerned about the pollution produced by their vehicles

“Get all your cars on the grid, then clean up the grid!” ...Paul Scott, co-founder, Plug-In America (click to enlarge)

WHAT
Bagatelle-Black: “By the end of this article, readers should understand why it is better for the environment to power cars with electricity from the grid instead of gasoline made from oil.”

WHEN
Bagatelle-Black: “ICE: Internal Combustion Engine – The smog-belching, globe-warming automobile powerplants used in the dark ages of the 20th Century…”

WHERE
- Bagatelle-Black: “The total amount of pollution reduction [from driving an EV] for any location would depend on the local power plants. Areas with cleaner power plants would decrease overall pollution more than areas with dirty plants. However, nearly all urban areas would see a major improvement in local air quality because power plants are generally located far away from population centers while tail pipes produce smog right where we live and work.”
- Bagatelle-Black: “In areas where the grid is relatively “clean,” such as California and Arizona, EVs would reduce automobile-related greenhouse gas emissions by 71% or more…”



WHY
- Bagatelle-Black: “According to research compiled by Sherry Boschert, author of the book, Plug-in Hybrids: The Cars that Will Recharge America, use of EVs would reduce the amount of NOx [Nitrogen Oxides – Chemicals which create smog and other health hazards] generated by automobiles somewhere between 32 and 99%. Different studies have arrived at different figures, but virtually all agree that the reduction in NOx and other local pollutants would be significant…”
- Bagatelle-Black: “Greenhouse gases, on the other hand, are a serious problem whether they are produced next door or on the other side of the globe. EVs can reduce this burden on the environment as well. As is the case for smog-forming pollutants, an EV would produce absolutely no greenhouse gases if it were charged from a grid that was fueled by power plants which produced no greenhouse gases. However, EVs produce far fewer greenhouse gases even when charged by today’s old-fashioned grid. In his research paper entitled Debunking the Myth of EVs and Smokestacks, Chip Gribben concludes that EVs charging exclusively from power generated by old-fashioned, coal-burning plants would still reduce CO2 emissions by 17 to 22% relative to ICE-powered cars…”



QUOTES
- Paul Scott, co-founder, Plug-In America: “Get all your cars on the grid, then clean up the grid!”
- Bagatelle-Black: “If we start switching our cars to grid power right now, then they will benefit directly from advancements and improvements in renewable power generation. As fossil fuels become scarcer and more expensive, power plants using alternative energy sources will fuel an increasing percentage of our grid power demand. If we are using EVs as this transition occurs, we can keep driving along without having to rebuild our transportation infrastructure. When fossil fuels run out completely, we will be ready!”