| Displacing diesel and gasoline with electricity and compressed natural gas is a strategy to increase energy security, reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and improve air quality in North Carolina. The energy capacity of renewable electricity (solar, offshore wind, hydropower, and biomass) and renewable natural gas (methane collected from landfills, wastewater treatment plants, and concentrated animal farm operations) in North Carolina is estimated at the county level. Solar dominates at 90 percent of the total renewable energy potential with viable resources located primarily in central North Carolina. The Department of Energy's Alternative Fuel Life-Cycle Environmental and Economic Transportation (AFLEET) tool is used to calculate the petroleum use, GHG emissions, and air pollutants up to 2030. Despite improvements in fuel efficiency and emission control technologies, light-duty plug-in hybrid electric vehicles outperform their gasoline and diesel counterparts in air pollutant reductions. However, recommendations for heavy-duty fuels are dependent on goals and priorities. |
