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Paul Nelson reportingHere's a story in honor of Earth Day. As the nation goes more "green," people are looking for more ways to cut back on pollution. But one increasingly popular method may not be as clean as you might think, at least not yet.
Some researchers say they expect to see sales of electric golf cart-type vehicles to jump by $2.3 billion by 2012. "Eighty-three percent of Utah's electricity -- 83 to 90 percent, in that range -- comes from coal-fired power plants," said David Litvin, president of the Utah Mining Association.
I asked Litvin if more people buy electric cars, will more coal have to be used? "Yes, as the use of electricity goes up in this state for houses and for business, then demand thereby goes up, and so more coal is burned to meet that demand," he said.
But then you have to ask, aren't we just trading one form of pollution for another? Some Utah Division of Air Quality officials say the major pollutants from burning coal are similar to what you find in car exhaust.
"Oxides of nitrogen, sulfur dioxide, small particulate matter [and] carbon monoxide; those things are in common, yes," said Reginald Olsen, permitting branch manager for the Utah Division of Air Quality.
Olsen says two more coal-burning power plants have been proposed in Utah, but residents are appealing the plants' construction. But even if the construction goes ahead, Olsen says new plants are not nearly as dirty as old ones. "A lot of these old, dirty plants are still operating out there because they can't build the new ones yet," he said.
Other Division of Air Quality officials can't say if increased demand at coal plants will equal the same amount of pollution from thousands of gas-powered engines. But the good news is we might not have to compare the two things for long.
"I think it's anticipated that the electric grid is going to clean up over time. So, as that happens increasingly, you're going to see the benefits of electric cars," said Glade Sowards, energy program coordinator for the Utah Division of Air Quality.
Sowards says electric cars give owners the option of generating their own power from home solar panels.
E-mail: pnelson@ksl.com
