Car Electricity
(SFX: electrical arcs) 
ELECTRICITY. OUR NATION DEPENDS ON IT--BUT WE HAVEN'T YET COME UP WITH A WAY TO
GET IT THAT COMPLETELY SATISFIES EVERYONE. OIL AND NUCLEAR POWER AREN'T QUITE
CLEAN ENOUGH.  THE SUN AND THE WIND AREN'T QUITE EFFICIENT ENOUGH.  NOW WIILLET
KEMPTON HAS A NEW IDEA FOR AN ENERGY SOURCE: 

(SFX: car starting) 

ELECTRIC CARS.

Kempton: "The average house on a 24 hour day is using about one kilowatt. . . a battery
powered vehicle could put out from 20 to 100 kilowatts." 

KEMPTON IS A POLICY ANALYST AT THE UNIVERSITY OF DELAWARE AND HE'S CALCULATED
THAT UTILITIES WOULD SAVE MONEY BY BUYING ELECTRICITY FROM CAR OWNERS.  
ELECTRIC CARS ARE JUST STARTING TO HIT THE MARKET.  RIGHT NOW THEY GET ENERGY BY
BEING PLUGGED IN OVERNIGHT.  EVENTUALLY, IN MAYBE 10 YEARS OR SO, FUEL CELLS IN
THE CAR WILL GENERATE THEIR OWN ELECTRICITY.  EITHER WAY, THE CARS CAN TRANSFER
ELECTRICITY TO THE POWER PLANTS WHEN THEY'RE SITTING UNUSED AT PEAK TIMES DURING
THE DAY.

Kempton: "There are times when electric utilities need power very badly and they are
willing to pay a premium for it."

SINCE THESE ARE ELECTRIC CARS THEY WON'T CAUSE ANYWHERE NEAR THE AMOUNT OF
POLLUTION THAT GAS CARS DO.  THEY'D ALSO REDUCE THE NEED FOR OTHER KINDS OF
POWER PLANTS THAT CAN CREATE POLLUTION--ALL WHILE SAVING THE UTILITY COMPANIES
MONEY.  JUST 20% OF ALL THE CARS IN THE US WOULD BE ENOUGH TO POWER UP THE
NATION.

Kempton: "When 20% of the cars are electric rather than gas that will be more power
than the entire utility industry can generate."