Baltimore Sun:

The real threat to the planet is the rise of consumer society, not the kind of car we drive
What if “green” cars made pollution worse, not better? What if they increased greenhouse gas emissions instead of decreasing them? Preposterous, you say? Well, consider what’s happened in Sweden.
Through generous subsidies, Sweden aggressively pushed its citizens to trade in their old cars for energy-efficient replacements (hybrids, clean diesel vehicles, cars that run on ethanol). Sweden has been so successful in this initiative that it leads the world in per-capita sales of “green” cars. To everyone’s surprise, however, greenhouse gas emissions from Sweden’s transportation sector are up.
But perhaps we should not be so surprised. What do you expect when you put people in cars they feel good (or at least less guilty) about driving, which are also cheap to buy and run? Naturally, they drive them more. So much more, in fact, that they obliterate energy gains made by increased fuel efficiency.
We need to pay attention to this as GM and Nissan roll out their new green cars to great fanfare. The Chevy Volt, a hybrid with a lithium-ion battery, can go 35 miles on electric power alone (after charging overnight, for example), and GM brags on its website that if you limit your daily driving to that distance, you can “commute gas-free for an average of $1.50 a day.” The Volt’s price is listed at a very reasonable $33,000 (if you qualify for the maximum $7,500 in tax credits). The fully electric Nissan Leaf is advertized for an even more reasonable $26,000 (with qualifying tax credits, naturally). What a deal — and it’s good for you, too, the carmakers want you to know. As GM helpfully points out on its website, “Electricity is a cleaner source of power.”
Sweden is a model of sustainability innovation, while the U.S. is the most voracious consumer on the planet. Based on Sweden’s experience with green cars, it’s daunting to imagine their possible impact here. Who can doubt that they’ll likely inspire Americans to make longer commutes to work and live even further out in the exurbs — bringing development, blacktop and increased emissions with them?

That’s an interesting benefit the “greens” have yet to make in this country: buy a fuel efficient car, and that will create jobs as people “make longer commutes to work and live even further out in the exurbs — bringing development, blacktop and increased emissions with them.”

Then again, a coherent national energy policy that takes advantage of our resources to lower the price of gasoline would accomplish the same job creation.

Via @Dagblog