The Benefits of Biodiesel
Biodiesel is a renewable fuel made from vegetable or animal fat, is nontoxic, and reduces greenhouse gas emissions by a phenomenal 75%. Any diesel car or truck made since the mid 1990s can run on refined biodiesel. The industry that uses the most diesel fuel is the trucking industry, and its a very big industry. In 2007, commercial trucks traveled 114.1 billion miles around the United States using 50 billion gallons of diesel fuel. On average a long haul truck driver travels 43,000 miles every year. The problem is the average truck gets 5 miles per gallon!
Diesel Cars
The good news about diesel engines is that generally get better fuel economy than normal gas engines. Although they are not common, there are still many diesel powered cars available to the average consumer. For example, a Volkswagen Jetta TDI get 38 mpg and can run completely on biodiesel. There are many other diesel powered cars available today as well. Remember, biodiesel is renewable fuel and reduces greenhouse gas emissions by a phenomenal 75%.
CO2 emissions
Nothing contributes more to global warming that CO2 emissions from our vehicles. Americans love their cars, and today they are bigger and faster than they’ve ever been. According to the Federal Highway Administration, there are 241 million cars and trucks on the road in the United States, 53% of which are trucks, vans, SUVs, or minivans. The United States accounts for 30% of the world’s automobiles and require 8.2 million barrels of oil a day to operate them. That’s 11% of the world’s daily oil consumption. All that fuel we burn fills the air with 1,300 million tons of CO2 each year.
The impact this has on our planet is immeasurable. According to the United Nations Human Development Report released in November 2007, the automobile sector accounts for 30% of the greenhouse gas emissions in our atmosphere. Greenhouse Gas emissions are what cause global warming and put our planet, our futures, and the life’s of our children in great danger. The average fuel economy in the United States is 20.2 miles per gallon, compared to 35 mpg in Europe. The reason why is we love our trucks and SUVs, which only average 18 miles per gallon. Compare that to a Honda Civic at 36 mpg or a Toyota Matrix at 33 mpg, its easy to see why we burn so much fuel. Not to mention you can save a lot of money if your car has high fuel economy. Let’s say you drive 20,000 miles a year. At $4 a gallon, if your SUV gets 18 mpg compared to a 35 mpg car you’ll spend $2,159 more on fuel every year by driving an SUV. Another option is to purchase a Hybrid, which use both electric power and fuel.
THE FACTS
In 2007, commercial trucks traveled 114.1 billion miles through the United States and 50 billion gallons of diesel fuel. On average a long haul truck driver travels 43,000 miles every year. The problem is the average truck gets 5 miles per gallon!
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