“The new clean car fuel efficiency standards put the U.S. on the right path,” said Howard Learner, Executive Director of the Environmental Law & Policy Center. “This smart clean cars policy can help the economy and save money for Americans at the gas pump.  This policy progress will also reduce our dependence on foreign oil and achieve cleaner air for better public health.”

“Auto manufacturers are on board and ready to develop fuel-saving technology for tomorrow’s cars. These innovations will deliver huge benefits for cleaner air, reducing the soot and smog that damages our health and the carbon dioxide that threatens our climate. As American automakers develop cleaner cars, they will also create new jobs of the future and products that are more competitive abroad.”

Read more from the Associated Press

“Diving cleaner cars would keep $6.7 billion in Illinois’ economy,” said Howard Learner, Executive Director of the Environmental Law & Policy Center. “That $6.7 billion boost for would create 72,000 new jobs in Illinois, while reducing pollution and increasing our energy independence.”

Federal Clean Car Standards will be an important tool to achieve these fuel savings and reduce our dependence on foreign oil. ELPC is working to defend against political attacks on the Clean Air Act standards that would save consumers billions and reduce greenhouse gas pollution by nearly one billion tons. Cleaner cars, high-speed rail, and public transportation are important strategies to strengthen our economy while reducing pollution.

Download ELPC’s White Paper at www.elpc.org/ilcleancars

With cars like the Chevy Volt and Ford Focus, consumers and professionals agree that now is the time for these vehicles to retake the American market. But only through supporting consumer incentives and infrastructure modernization will customer demand for these Michigan manufactured cars grow. The video below features ELPC Policy Advocate, Madeleine Weil, explaining the need for legislative action in order to galvanize this demand.

Supporting plug-in vehicles means providing public charging stations, streamlining the process to install home charging stations and providing incentives to reduce the amount of pollution created by charging plug-in hybrid and electric vehicles. ELPC Executive Director Howard Learner told the Tribune, “We need to get the right policies in place, moving forward, soon. And when I say soon, I mean get them in place over the next six months to a year.” ELPC is working with the public and private sectors in Chicago to maximize the environmental benefits of plug-in vehicles.

Read the article here Learn more about plug-in vehicles at elpc.org/plug-ins

In an OpEd published in the Des Moines Register, ELPC Executive Director Howard Learner says, “Iowa can and should be a leader in gaining the jobs of the future by helping build new, cleaner cars that increase our energy independence, reduce pollution and save us money at the pump.” Read the full OpEd.

Many of us are excited by the new plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEVs) coming into the market later this year.  They’re cool, high-tech and use less gasoline from countries that don’t like us very much and threaten America’s national security.  They’re a big winner for reducing pollution in the Northern Illinois market.  What’s not to like about cars with environmentally-friendly names like the Nissan Leaf, or charged-up names like the Chevy Volt?

The devil is in the details, however, when it comes to whether driving and charging the PHEVs will lead to less, instead of more, pollution compared with “conventional” hybrid gas-electric vehicles (HEVs) that are available to consumers today.  As my real estate friends say, it’s about “location, location, location.”  It’s also about what time you’re charging the PHEV.  Whether the mix of electricity generating sources used for charging are high-CO2 or low-CO2 depends a lot on the location and the time of day.  In short, if the charging source is electricity generated by old highly-polluting coal plants, on balance, that may hurt the environment more than it helps in some cases.

That’s the conclusion of a 2009 study by the National Research Council of the National Academies and a 2007 study issued by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency.  When coal plants supply more than 50% of the power mix, the equation is not favorable for PHEVs compared to HEVs when it comes to the CO2 pollution (global warming) and SO2 (acid rain-causing) pollution; for other pollutants the data varies.  HEVs work better for the environment in these places.

PHEVs are an important emerging technology — where the cleaner energy power sources are used to charge their batteries.  Let’s compare and contrast among markets.  In Indiana, about 95% of the electricity is supplied by coal plants.  It’s not a good place to look for PHEVs as a pollution solution.  However, in Northern Illinois, most of the power supplied at the margin at night is from low/no-CO2 wind power and nuclear power plants.  Much better.

Peak power prices are very high on hot summer afternoons when the most highly polluting plants tend to be running on the margin to meet soaring electricity demand from cranked-up air conditioners and fans.  However, at night, the Northern Illinois power market has so much surplus nuclear and wind power available that prices are very low.  Indeed, during some night-time hours, as supply exceeds demand, the prices are so low that the can’t-easily-be-shut-down (so-called “must run”) nuclear plants and wind turbines are “running negative” They make money selling power during the day, but are essentially giving it away at night.

Here are three policies and actions help make the PHEV pollution equation work favorably:

1. Location Matters – Let’s Pick Our Places for PHEVs vs. Conventional HEVs: Let’s push for PHEVs and favorable policies in those places where wind power, solar power, hydro power and nuclear power supply more than half of the power mix.  Northern Illinois (nuclear and wind power) is a good market.  South Dakota, too (hydro and wind power).  Coal-heavy Indiana and Southern Illinois are not.  Sorry.  In many places, HEVs work better for the environment.

2. Time Matters – Discount Off-Peak Electric Rates for PHEV Charging: In most Midwestern states, electricity rates are flat, while power market prices are not.  On a hot summer day, consumers may be paying less then the market price per kw of electricity, but on that same summer night, the utility may be charging much more than the power, transmission and delivery actually cost.  Therefore, utilities have an incentive to encourage PHEV owners to charge their cars during off-peak night times, rather than during high-price peak power day times.  Time of use rates are economically justified, but complicated for many social, practical and equity reasons to implement on an across the board basis.  However, there are steps that we can take in a sensible direction.

Offering discounted off-peak rates that incentivize PHEV owners to charge their cars in their garages at night, instead of during the day, is a win-win-win-win when the location is right as discussed above.  The wind power, nuclear power and hydro power generating companies gain new, more profitable sales.  The utilities gain profitable electricity sales, rather than losing money by selling peak-priced power at lower flat rates on hot summer days.  Consumers who charge their PHEVs at night save money (about $150 – $175 per year in Northern Illinois) through the discounted off-peak rates.  All of us gain environmental quality benefits from PHEV charging when the energy mix equation results in less pollution instead of more.

Let’s bring environmental groups, consumer groups, auto companies, utilities, nuclear plant owners and wind power owners and developers together to petition the state public utility commissions to authorize pilot programs of discounted off-peak rates for PHEV charging.  New meters will be required, but those costs can be amortized through the rate savings over time.

3. Time Matters – Solar Power Works Well for PHEV Charging: Solar energy is most available on hot, sunny afternoon when power market prices are highest and the power is needed most.  So, if PHEV charging stations are powered by solar, the pollution equation works well.  How can we encourage that to happen?  First, by using planning, zoning and electric utility regulatory laws and policies to encourage location of charging stations in places where there is good solar access.  Second, authorizing favorable “net metering” rates for charging stations to sell solar-generated power back into the grid when it is not fully used for charging cars.

The Northern Illinois Plug-In Hybrid Opportunity: President Obama stated his national goal of 1 million PHEVs on the road by 2015. Let’s look at the opportunities in his Northern Illinois home area of, which is one of the best places in the country for PHEVs to accelerate:

• Large market of car buyers and users in third largest metro area in the U.S.
• Large amount of auto manufacturing and suppliers, including two existing plants that could potentially be retooled – the Ford plant on the southeast side of Chicago, and the Chrysler plant in Belvedere.
• Surplus, zero marginal cost, no-greenhouse gas wind power on-line and under development.  Some of this excess wind power supply is now being sold out-of-state.
• Surplus, low marginal cost, no-direct greenhouse gas nuclear power generation.
• Precedent for setting pilot program time-of-use rates, which would offer low off-peak electricity rates for charging PHEV batteries at night.

In short, the markets, policies and players are aligned in Northern Illinois for this PHEV strategy to succeed.  This is a win-win-win-win for more transportation efficiency and better national security, less global warming pollution, more utility and energy generation company revenues, and more job creation.

Getting more PHEVs on the road is a key step forward in terms of reducing our dependence on foreign oil and, in some parts of the country, they also can sharply reduce both CO2 pollution.  However, in places whose electricity comes primarily from coal, we need to develop PHEVs simultaneously with legislation to clean up the electricity system.  Then everyone can take full advantage of PHEVs’ technological improvements.

The pollution equation shifts dramatically depending on the power mix in the charging location and the time of day.  From an environmental standpoint, location and time matter, a lot.  We should focus on supporting PHEV rollouts in Northern Illinois and other places and at those times where there is excess low/no-CO2 wind, hydro and nuclear power available at the margin.  Let’s drive the market to achieve common benefits for the car-buying public, clean energy generators and utilities, clean car manufacturers and auto workers, and national security.

The shift toward cleaner cars presents an opportunity for Midwest manufacturing centers, as carmakers develop more efficient technologies and better pollution controls.

“The U.S. EPA’s action shows the Clean Air Act working successfully to achieve environmental progress and economic benefits together by advancing clean technologies that provide positive solutions,” said Howard Learner, Executive Director of the Environmental Law & Policy Center. “The Midwest should be a leader in capturing the jobs of the future and building the new, cleaner cars of the future that will increase our energy independence and save consumers billions each year at the gas pump.”

Under the new standards, average fuel economy for passenger cars will increase from 27.5 mpg in 2009 to 37.8 mpg by 2016 – an improvement of nearly 40 percent.  Building cleaner cars will reduce lifetime greenhouse gas pollution from vehicles produced between 2012 and 2016 by 655 million metric tons.  By 2030, the 2012-2016 standards will reduce GHG emissions from the U.S. light-duty fleet by approximately 21 percent.

American automakers have expressed support for the standards, which will make American cars more competitive at home and abroad. American vehicles manufactured to comply with the federal clean cars standards can also meet the stringent greenhouse gas emissions standards for new vehicles that have been adopted by the European Union, Japan, China and Canada.

The new fuel efficiency and emissions rules are expected to cost approximately $52 billion and will generate more than $182 billion in economic benefits.  The bulk of new investment by automakers will be for development of innovative fuel efficiency technologies.  Those standard-driven research and development investments will create new jobs and put U.S. manufacturers at the forefront of clean car technology.

“Clean car standards and innovative technology will spur new jobs in research and development of pollution control technologies and create new manufacturing opportunities in the Midwest,” said Jack Shaner, Deputy Director of the Ohio Environmental Council.

“Because they reduce fuel consumption, these standards are an important step toward increasing our energy independence and strengthening national security,” said David Gard, Energy Program Director for the Michigan Environmental Council. New standards for cars of the future are predicted to save as much as 11.6 billion gallons of gasoline per year by 2016 (equal to half the oil the U.S. imports from Saudi Arabia) and save consumers up to $31.8 billion annually at the pump.

The coalition working to promote the economic benefits of the new clean car standards includes The Environmental Law & Policy Center, The Hoosier Environmental Council, The Ohio Environmental Council, The Michigan Environmental Council and the Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy.

Estimated annual benefits of the federal clean cars standards for the Midwest (by 2016):

Analysis of NOPR proposed standards from Environment America “State Leadership and the National Clean Cars Program.”

Average fuel economy required under federal clean car standards:

Under the new standards, average fuel economy for passenger cars will increase from 27.5 mpg in 2009 to 37.8 mpg by 2016 – an improvement of nearly 40 percent.  Building cleaner cars will reduce lifetime greenhouse gas pollution from vehicles produced between 2012 and 2016 by over 655 million tons. By 2030, the 2012-2016 standards will reduce GHG emissions from the U.S. light-duty fleet by approximately 21 percent.

The shift toward cleaner cars also presents an opportunity for manufacturing centers in the Midwest, as carmakers develop more efficient technologies and better pollution controls. ELPC believes the Midwest should be a leader in capturing the jobs of the future, building new, cleaner cars that increase our energy independence and reduce pollution.

New standards for cars of the future are predicted to save as much as 11.6 billion gallons of gasoline per year by 2016 (equal to half the oil the U.S. imports from Saudi Arabia) and save consumers up to $31.8 billion annually at the pump.

More information:

ELPC’s report on the health and environmental benefits of clean car standards to Illinois: Breathing Free in Illinois

For more information on state by state benefits, please see Environment America’s report: State Leadership and the National Clean Cars Program

Click here to hear the podcast, with accompanying slides.

Or, click here to download the slides [pdf file].

ELPC hosted a webinar on  January 20th about how strategies for locations and time-of charging are necessary to make plug-in hybrid vehicles a key part of the solution to global warming pollution problems. Click here to hear the podcast, with accompanying slides.