Pollution matters to me; burning gasoline damages our health, environment and future. However, more electric vehicles aren’t enough.
A recent University of Minnesota study stated that electric vehicles are only clean when their energy source is clean. If powered by coal, electric vehicles produce more pollution than traditional vehicles. More electric cars could just lead to more coal energy being produced. We wouldn’t be eliminating pollution, just passing the burden onto others.
A solution that would reduce pollution instead of passing it along would be a fee on dirty energy. Dirty energy will be used as long as it’s cheap because people want to spend as little as possible. If we want pollution to stop, dirty energy can’t be cheaper than the clean stuff. Until coal is not the cheapest source, electricity won’t be clean.
Charge a fee on coal for its environmental damage first, then roll out electric cars. That will significantly reduce pollution.
Richard Buck
Murray