But, this image also shows the huge opportunity we have when it comes to our power needs and the future of transportation in the world. Just because your house is getting its power from a coal power plant doesn't mean it has to stay that way. If you could utilize solar power, you could charge your car with the Sun. You could even power your house and charge your car with the right size solar array, but that would depend on a lot of factors. Does your house get enough sunshine? Do you have tall trees that cast shadows on your roof? How big of array do you need? Is your home energy efficient? Can you afford it?
Let's say for arguments sake, you just want a PV system to charge your car, with whatever is left over being used to lower your home energy bills a little every month. Sure, it will cost more upfront, but your return on investment happens a lot faster than you think. Let's do the math.
The average American fills up there car once or twice per week, according to GasBuddy. So, lets go with 1.5 just to be on the safe side. The average fill-up per person is about 15 gallons (you have to factor in those SUVs). Current gas prices are about $2.00 per gallon, so that's (15gal x $2.00) x 1.5 = $45 per week in gas. Multiply that by 52 weeks that's $2,340 spent per year per car. (This is just an exercise. Prices vary from place to place and not everyone drives a Toyota or a Ford Focus. SUVs use more fuel, so maybe the SUVs bump the gallons and fill ups higher? Only a more detailed study would be able to tell you, which I did not do nor did I find.)
Now, a brand new Photovoltaic system on your roof costs anywhere from $4,500-$30,000, depending on the size. Average cost is about $12,500 for a 3kw system, which would provide about 25-30% of an average American household. US citizens receive a 30% federal solar tax credit for buying the system. Your state and/or county and/or city may also have a grant program in place that would further increase your rebate. At the very least, you get $3,500 back in the federal tax credit in year one. You also no longer need to buy gas, because you car runs on electricity that you are producing with the help of the Sun. So you start saving on gas immediately. (Check out the site PVWatts to figure out what size system you could have at your house and how much you could save each year.)
Current gas prices are hovering around $2.00 per gallon depending on where you live (sorry New York, DC and California...it just costs more for you to buy gas. It's called demand.) You would see a Return on Investment of $2,340 per year. Places with higher gas prices would obviously save more. At that rate, you would recoup your solar investment in 3.85 years. That's if gas prices stay as low as they are now. History says they won't stay low and will go back up. If gas goes up to $3.00 per gallon by next year, you would save $3,510 in year 2 in gas-not-purchased, and the ROI accelerates. You would then pay back the PV system in just under three years. If prices drop again, or rise again, it will change the ROI time. You still get your full investment back faster than you would with most other investments.
So, as it stands today, if you buy an electric car and plug it in at home, yes, you are most likely using a local coal-powered power plant's dirty energy to charge your environmentally friendly electric car. But, with a little foresight and some planning, you can charge your car with clean renewable energy. It takes investment and some out of pocket expenses, but it pays back in the long run. Then, we can redraw the meme above and show solar panels on the house and the disconnected power lines to the power plant. If you want to reduce your carbon footprint, there are ways to do it. You just have to take the first step.
Check out the these websites to learn more about clean energy, energy efficiency and what you can do to start making the transition to renewables!
http://epa.gov/greenpower/buygp/index.htm
http://energy.gov
http://pvwatts.nrel.gov/index.php
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