Magby 1

Rondeeda Magby

Victoria Narcon, Dianne Lancaster

BA231

May 21, 2018

Global Warming: Transportation’s Carbon Footprint

The United States is the largest consumer of petroleum. When the petroleum is used in
engines and burned, the petroleum releases carbon dioxide which is known as a greenhouse gas.
The use of petroleum poses a significant impact on energy, the climate, and the environment.
The United States typically imports about 19% of its petroleum, and transportation is responsible
for nearly three-quarters of total U.S. petroleum consumption. The United States depends
heavily on foreign petroleum and therefor also is in jeopardy of having trade deficits, supply
disruption, and price changes from the imported petroleum.
There are several other adverse effects from the use of petroleum that impose health
concerns; noise, carbon monoxide, air quality, acid rain, and smog. Transportation contributes to
global climate change through emissions of carbon dioxide, methane, hydrocarbons, nitrous
oxide, and water vapor discharged by aircraft. Responsible organizations are aware of the effects
of these types of fuels and are finding ways to reduce their carbon footprint on the environment.
Using other fuel options, changing how we transport goods, and new vehicle technology, will
help organizations reduce their carbon footprint.
Some of the other fuel options can consist of biodiesel, hydrogen, ethanol, natural gas,
propane, and electricity. According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), many of
these fuels, depending on how they are produced, will reduce overall emissions of CO2 into the
atmosphere. The EPA states that operating a vehicle exclusively on hydrogen or electricity
produces zero harmful greenhouse gas emissions. Accordingly, the amount of greenhouse gasses
emitted when the fuel is produced depends on the source of the fuel. For example, generating
electricity from coal creates far more emissions than electricity generated from renewable
resources like wind.
Biodiesel, according to the US Department of Energy, is domestically produced and is a
fuel source that can be made from vegetable oils, animal fats, and recycled restaurant grease.
 Magby 2

Biodiesel is like petroleum diesel, but it is a cleaner-burning renewable alternative and can
significantly reduce lifecycle carbon emissions because the carbon dioxide released during
combustion is offset by the carbon dioxide sequestered while growing the feedstocks that are
used to produce the fuel
According to the Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Energy Association (FCHEA), hydrogen fuel
cells are electrical generation devices that utilize a chemical reaction to unleash a fuel’s latent
energy. They are clean, quiet, efficient, and scalable, allowing them versatility in nearly every
power application. Due to their high efficiency, fuel cells are very clean, with their only by-
products being electricity, excess heat, and water. Fuel cells do not have any moving parts, so
they produce almost no noise. Millions of metric tons of hydrogen are produced annually in the
United States which is enough to fuel tens of millions of fuel cell vehicles. Hydrogen has been
safely produced and used in the U.S. for nearly 50 years. Hydrogen is non-toxic and does not
pose a threat to human or environmental health if released. Hydrogen fuel is produced
domestically and is clean, quiet, and versatile. There are some problems currently with using
hydrogen. Platinum is used to create hydrogen fuel during the electrolysis process, and platinum
is a very expensive metal. Another issue; hydrogen is currently only available in limited areas of
California and New York.
In the United States, 95% of ethanol is produced from the starch in corn. The percentage
of petroleum-based fuel imported to the United States would be much higher if we did not have
ethanol produced and consumed domestically so using ethanol fuel blends has a substantial
impact. The use of a domestically acquired fuel such as ethanol helps support the US economy
and reduces the likelihood of international supply interruptions. It is still argued whether vehicles
that use ethanol produce fewer emissions than those than run on gasoline or diesel. Since ethanol
is made from corn, we can supply unlimited amounts of ethanol. Ethanol has some measurable
greenhouse gas emissions, but it is offset by the lack of emissions of growing the crop compared
to the emissions from refineries to make diesel and other fuels. Between ethanol, diesel, and
unleaded fuel, ethanol is the best environmental choice. Ethanol is produced domestically which
eliminates or at the very least, reduces the need to import foreign oil and reduces the emissions
from the refineries to make the oil useable.
Natural gas is a fossil fuel and has been a fuel alternative since the 1930’s. The global
warming emissions from its ignition are lower than the emissions from coal or oil. Natural
 Magby 3

gas emits 50 to 60 percent less carbon dioxide (CO2) when combusted in a new, efficient, natural
gas power plant compared with emissions from a typical new coal plant. In the United States, 3
percent of all-natural gas used has been by the transportation sector such as taxicabs and public
buses. A problem with using natural gas is a limit on mass-production of natural gas vehicles
and a lack of refueling infrastructure.
The US Department of Energy states that “propane has a lower carbon content compared
to conventional gasoline and diesel.” It also states that when propane is used as a vehicle fuel,
“propane can offer life cycle greenhouse (GHG) emissions benefits over conventional fuels,
depending on vehicle type, age, and drive cycle.” The pounds of CO2 emitted from propane per
Btu is 139.0 verses diesel at 161.3 Btu.
Electric fuel is somewhat like hydrogen fuel where the EPA states that, “operating a
vehicle exclusively on electricity produces zero harmful greenhouse gas emissions.” Again, the
amount of greenhouse gasses emitted when the fuel is produced depends on the source. Unlike
hydrogen fuel vehicles, there are not many options for electric semi-trucks able currently. The
Tesla semi was launched in November 2017. Tesla claims that this electric semi is, “faster, safer,
and cheaper, to run than anyone expected.” Tesla claims that with their new mega charger
system that it only takes 30 minutes of charging to add 400 miles of range while hauling 80,000
pounds of product.
To assist organizations in reducing their carbon footprint, the Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), have
proposed the creation of a new generation of clean vehicles, even large trucks. They have
enacted and proposed new standards to help control the greenhouse gas emissions while
increasing fuel efficiency. These new standards are expected to reduce more than 3,100 million
metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions through the year 2025. For organizations who track their
carbon footprint, this will be an option to help lower their carbon footprint number. The
downside though is it may take while for organizations to be able to phase out the older vehicles
for the newer environmentally friendlier vehicles.
 Magby 4

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Worldwide, transportation attributes to about 25% of harmful greenhouse emissions. It is

expected that energy form transportation could double by the year 2050 which would accelerate
the emissions of toxic greenhouse gases. The transportation industry as a whole, can mitigate
some of these harmful emissions by adapting to environmentally friendly fuels and transport
vehicles.

RISKS

1. Global Warming. Greenhouse gases absorb radiation, preventing it from escaping into
space. This energy increases the earth’s temperature, heats the oceans, and melts polar ice
causing weather changes and rising sea levels, as well as a myriad of other side effects
such as plant growth, smog, acid rain, ozone depletion, as well as the health risk to
humans from these side effects.
2. First try at a new method or product may not give desired results. There may be options
that work better for some than others. Some costs may be incurred while testing out new
options.

RECOMMENDATION

It is recommended that transportation organizations evaluate and know what their carbon
footprint is and find ways to reduce their carbon footprint by as much as 50%. As mentioned
above on page 2, there are several options available. Organizations may also create their own
innovative new options to fuel, vehicles, and modes of transportation. Some options may even
contribute to cost saving for organizations.

PROPOSAL

To address the above problem, I propose the following:

1. Research and monitor the organizations current carbon footprint. Determining

what the carbon footprint is and the sources that cause it will be critical in finding ways
to address how to reduce it. This will give a starting point baseline.
 Magby 5

2. Create an action team. Forming a team of the right people with the skills,
abilities, and decision-making power to, set a goal, see what the current condition is,
engaging in research, brainstorming alternatives, testing the best alternative, and
evaluating the results, may assist in reaching the reduction goal.
 Magby 6

Howard, Bill. “Tesla Semi: 500-Mile Range, Cheaper Than Diesel, Quick to
Charge.”ExtremeTech, 17 Nov. 2017, www.extremetech.com/extreme/259195-tesla-semi-500-mile-
range-cheaper-diesel-quick-charge.https://www.extremetech.com/extreme/259195-tesla-semi-
500-mile-range-cheaper-diesel-quick-charge

“Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page.” Alternative Fuels Data Center: Hydrogen
Fueling Station Locations, www.afdc.energy.gov/.

Ethanol - Alternative Fuels Data Center, US Department of Energy, (2018), Website

https://www.afdc.energy.gov/fuels/ethanol_fuel_basics.html

”Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page.” Alternative Fuels Data Center: Hydrogen
Fueling Station Locations, www.afdc.energy.gov/.

Alternative Fuels Data Center, US Department of Energy, (2018), Website

https://www.afdc.energy.gov/fuels/ethanol_fuel_basics.html

“Fuel Cell Hydrogen Energy Association (FCHEA).” Advanced Clean Transportation News,
www.act-news.com/contributing-organization/fuel-cell-hydrogen-energy-association-fchea/.
“Alternative Vehicle Fuels.” EPA, Environmental Protection Agency, 24 Oct. 2016,
www.epa.gov/greenvehicles/alternative-vehicle-fuels.

“Coverage of Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Petroleum Use under Climate Policy.” Center

for Climate and Energy Solutions, 24 Oct. 2017, www.c2es.org/document/coverage-of-greenhouse-

gas-emissions-from-petroleum-use-under-climate-policy/.

“Final Rule Vehicle Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Corporate Average Fuel Economy

Standards.” EPA, Environmental Protection Agency, 16 Aug. 2017, www.epa.gov/regulations-

emissions-vehicles-and-engines/final-rule-model-year-2017-and-later-light-duty-vehicle.