Lester Brown offers a doable strategy for cutting gasoline consumption by 70 percent: wind power combined with hybrid vehicles that have a second battery which allow local trips to be entirely electric. As I've been saying, wind power seems to be the most likely candidate to become a major source of renewable electricity. The problem in transportation has been that you can't power a car or truck with a windmill, or can you? That's really what Brown is suggesting; it's simply being done through the power grid rather than directly.
He admits that not everyone will welcome wind turbines in their communities, but he adds that rural populations, especially farmers and ranchers are finding them an excellent way to enhance their livelihoods.
Could Brown's vision work? I say, yes. Will we embrace it? The jury is out, but the robust sales of hybrid cars are a good leading indicator.
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