Not So Green Cars

When an electric car rolls off the production line, it has already been responsible for 30,000 pounds of carbon-dioxide emissions. The amount for making a conventional car is 14,000 pounds.

Thus, if an electric car is driven 50,000 miles, it will have placed more carbon-dioxide in the atmosphere than a similarly-sized gasoline-powered car driven the same number of miles.

And if the energy used to recharge the electric car comes mostly from coal-fired power plants, it will be responsible for the emission of almost 15 ounces of CO2 for every mile it is driven, which is three ounces more than a gas-powered car.