CONLEY COMMENTARY (WSAU) – Here are some climate change facts.
Tailpipe emissions from cars account for about 16% of CO2 pollution. Pollution from aviation is just behind private automobiles, although far fewer people fly than drive. Other things, like smokestack pollution from power generation and factories, are much higher.
Some things, like not doing yard work on high smog days, switching to electric lawn mowers, or not grilling outdoors, are so negligible that they shouldn’t even be discussed in the climate change debate.
And now the inconvenient truth about our cars: electric vehicles, which are presented as the great game-changer, are spectacularly unpopular. Electric vehicles account for about 1% of new car sales. Electric hybrid sales are approaching 6%.
The American public overwhelmingly prefers cars that are powered by gasoline. And why wouldn’t they? An electric car costs $62,000. Most drivers aren’t interested in having to recharge their vehicle when driving off to Madison or Green Bay. Charging stations are sparse. You’ll get a lot of fuzzy math if you ask what plugging-in your car will do to your home’s electric bill. No one tells you that your electric vehicle’s battery becomes less efficient over time, and the after-market for electric cars is non-existent.
Which brings us to eclectic busses. Grants are available, up to $375,000 per school district, who want to buy them. Electric powered busses have a better chance of catching on. They are local vehicles that can be re-charged at a fixed location each night. But they are expensive. Transportation costs are already a huge part of school budgets, where the taxpayers foot the bill. Those subsidies? That’s taxpayer money too. No one will buy electric powered vehicles at market-prices.
Dreams of transitioning from the internal combustion engine by 2035 are just that – dreams. Those who support this mandate are making a bet that electric technology will get better and cheaper between now and then. Let’s ban John Kerry, Leonardo DeCaprio and Taylor Swift from flying in those private planes before they ban your gas-powered car.
Chris Conley
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