CARazed

“Everything’s bigger in Texas — Big pickup trucks, Big SUVs, Big carbon footprint. Texans’ fondness for large, manly vehicles (plus 19 coal-burning power plants) has helped make the Lone Star State the biggest carbon polluter in the nation. ”

This is disturbing. 670 million metric tons of CO2 was dumped into the atmosphere by Texans in 2003 making Texas the 7th biggest polluter in the world, if you count Texas in a list of countries. The numbers must be accurate they are coming from the official U.S. Energy Information Administration. This amount is more than California and Pennsylvania which are the second and third highest ranking polluting states.

The problem goes beyond big cars and trucks too. 19 coal-burning power plants, many refineries, chemical plants, limited mass transit options all add up to this environmental mess. The article makes it sound like Texans also stand behind the bigger is better mantra when it comes to their trucks. It also sounds like the Texan State Government doesn’t think the environment is a problem. The Governor himself still seems to question that global warming is a man made problem.

If this article in TIME is correct then we shouldn’t be surprised that the Bush Administration has taken the actions they have. The Oil industry seems to have them all over a barrel. I hope this isn’t true but if one were to simply judge them by the junk they are spewing into the air you might have the evidence you need.

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Many people seem to ask this same simple question. Why don’t American auto makers give us the small super fuel-efficient cars they sell in Europe? We think the answer is simple. Americans choose to buy bigger cars, and American efficiency requirements are lower than Europe’s.

It’s fair to say that Europeans have been struggling with fuel cost and environmental concerns longer than we have in America. We live in very different places, with different population densities, different values, different cultures, and different governments. But the reality of cost and pollution affects us all in very similar ways. Fuel efficiency, which you could think of as a combination of miles per gallon and CO2 emissions, is a common growing pain point for all of us.

In Europe the same auto makers that make our cars, and a few more like Peugeot, Citroen, and Fiat, have taken a different approachs to the problem of efficiency than they have for us, for the most part. To see the difference compare the cars listed as the top 10 green cars on Yahoo’s Green Car Centre (UK) and Yahoo’s Green Center (USA).

American’s seem to get bigger more powerful cars from the same auto makers. The American green cars look luxurious and powerful next to the Citroen C1, Toyota Aygo, and Peugeot 107. You’ll also notice the fuel economy numbers are different. This is due in part to the different methods of calculating fuel efficiency but it is also due to the fact that these are slightly different cars.

The point is simply that Americans seem to demand a different product, so we’re delivered a different product by the same people. We seem to want more physical space and power, and it seems we’re OK with spending more money on fuel and expelling more CO2 into the air.

As fuel costs increase and the value of the dollar drops, more and more American’s are seeing that smaller and lighter might be better for now. It can be a hard transition to make but the payback is felt immediately at the pump and in your bank account. If you are environmentally conscious driving green will also give you a bit more peace of mind.

We can also rest assured that as the majority of Americans shift their auto buying preference to more efficient cars the auto manufacturers will also shift to meet that demand. It is the simplest economic model in action, supply and demand. Government regulation might have some effect on moving us in the green direction but it is our buying power that will really invoke change. The pen might be mightier than the sword, but the dollar is definitely the bottom line. It can move mountains.