Global Warming News

Calls for Dramatic Increase in Plug-in Hybrids; Paints Grim Picture for Corn Ethanol 

Green Bay, WI – While new and developing technologies hold great promise to wean America off of oil, many alternative fuel options would cause a whole host of other problems such as increasing global warming emissions, according to a report released today by Wisconsin Environment.  

“Today’s headlines are telling us that we must move away from oil as a transportation fuel,” said Dan Kohler, Director of Wisconsin Environment. “We can use existing and new technologies to tackle this challenge as we develop a clean energy economy in Wisconsin. But we must be careful to not make other problems worse in our quest to reduce our dependence on oil,” he added.  

The report; Beyond Oil: The Transportation Fuels That Can Help Reduce Global Warming, evaluates the leading contenders in the alternative fuels race, with a specific focus on their impact on global warming and the environment. Key findings include:

• The report shows that the best solution to lowering emissions from vehicles is to combine the approaches that offer the greatest environmental benefits. For example, an efficient plug-in hybrid vehicle operating on electricity and cellulosic ethanol made from crop waste has global warming emissions that are at least 70% lower than gasoline.
• The report cites corn ethanol, soy biodiesel and liquid coal as the worst alternatives; all of which have 50% - 100% greater relative global warming emissions than conventional gasoline;

“This new report is right on target,” said Michael Kraft, Professor of Public and Environmental Affairs at UW-Green Bay. “The world is changing, and Wisconsin could be a leader in moving the nation away from an oil-based transportation economy. The good news is that we can do this in a way that improves the economy, creates jobs, lowers the price of transportation, cleans the air, reduces the risk of global warming, and helps to free us from reliance oil-producing nations around the world—all at the same time. There really is no time to waste."

Governor Doyle’s Global Warming Task Force has been studying options to reduce Wisconsin’s share of global warming pollution and promote a clean energy economy.  The Task Force recently announced its support for a plan that includes policies to adopt a low carbon fuels standard and have Wisconsin join other states that have adopted a clean cars policy to make vehicles more efficient. 

“The Task Force recommendations for transportation policy are encouraging and are reinforced by the findings in this report,” said Kohler.  “Imagine driving a plug-in hybrid that gets great mileage running on locally grown cellulosic ethanol, and at night, plugging it into an energy source generated from the wind or the sun.  We can do this,” Kohler concluded.  

The report makes a number of recommendations to local, state and federal policymakers for achieving large reductions in global warming pollution from cars and light trucks and reducing our oil dependence; including: 

·         Adopting requirements to lower the carbon content of transportation fuels; including amending the recently passed federal renewable fuels standard to require that all ethanol sold be subject to a low carbon fuel standard.

·         Rejecting policies that promote or subsidize fuels that would make the problem worse.

·         Requiring that by 2020, all new vehicles are capable of using lower carbon fuels, whether electricity or bio-fuels.

·         Supporting additional research into cultivation techniques for cellulosic feedstock and into technologies for converting cellulosic feed-stocks, especially waste, into fuel.

·         Improving vehicle fuel economy and pursuing measures to reduce total driving. These measures would further cut global warming emissions and reduce our vulnerability to rapid changes in the global petroleum market.

Individuals across Wisconsin have begun to take action. "My goal was to power my home efficiently and then to power my vehicle at the same time,” said Rip Ortiz, who installed solar panels on his home in Green Bay. Remarking on this success, he offered that “We need good policies so that everyone can make these changes."

Wisconsin Environment looks forward to working with all parties to reduce our dependence on oil, adopt global warming solutions and advance a clean energy economy.

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Wisconsin Environment is a statewide, citizen-based environmental advocacy organization. www.WisconsinEnvironment.org

Beyond-Oil.pdf