Federally-mandated alternative fuel vehicles are important in creating the fueling network that will allow the entire country to run on less carbon emissions. Unfortunately, the program is not being run with an eye on meeting that goal. At the risk of counting unhatched chickens, this is a matter for the Obama agenda.
Residents of CA and NY are mostly unaware that most states have fewer than ten stations for NG vehicles.
biodiesel is no more widespread
Ethanol is widely available wherever corn is grown. But corn ethanol has its own issues; McCain's right, calling for the import of cheaper, more eco-friendly sugar cane ethanol. This requires facing down agricultural interests financially vested in Bush corn ethanol subsidies.
graphics source
AF Station Finder
From the current Oil & Gas Journal:
Agencies use oil products in alternative fueled vehicles, GAO says
Federal government agencies are meeting requirements to acquire vehicles which can use alternative fuel, but are running them on petroleum products, the Government Accountability Office said on Oct. 23.
"As they have over the past four years, agencies will likely continue to acquire the mandated percentage of [alternative fueled vehicles]. However, they will likely find it more difficult to meet both the requirement to fuel AFVs only with alternative fuel and the goal of increasing alternative fuel use by 10% annually because of the limited availability of alternative fuels," GAO said in a report.
The congressional government watchdog service examined 21 agencies and their vehicle fleets which were trying to meet energy objectives for fiscal 2007. It found that all of the agencies satisfied a requirement under the 2002 Energy Policy Act that AFVs account for 75% of new light-duty acquisitions for fleets of 20 or more vehicles in metropolitan statistical areas with populations of 250,000 or more.
But it also found that none of the 21 agencies were using only alternative fuel in their AFVs as mandated by the 2005 Energy Policy Act. The law gives the US Department of Energy authority to waive the requirement if it determines that operating on alternative fuel is not feasible. DOE defines this as alternative fuel not being available within five miles or 15 minutes, or if it costs 15% more than gasoline, GAO said.
"To help agencies more effectively use their resources to increase use of alternative fuel and decrease use of petroleum, Congress should consider aligning the federal fleet AFV acquisition and fueling requirements with current alternative fuel availability and revising those requirements as appropriate," it said.