Press Contact: Sophie Cardona: (212) 361-2400, ext. 244 , or email cardona@informinc.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, March 11, 1998

NO POTHOLES ON THE ROAD TO ZERO-EMISSION VEHICLES

New York, NY -- According to a report issued today by INFORM, Inc., the technology to power electric vehicles with hydrogen fuel cells is now available for commercial use. Such vehicles are an environmentalist's dream – creating virtually no pollution – and an economist's hope for eliminating the nation's reliance on imported oil.

"No new scientific or technological breakthroughs are necessary to move these vehicles onto our nation's roads. The major challenges involve engineering refinement and infrastructure development. Making the technology commercially viable requires a political commitment to the future," states INFORM's Senior Fellow James S. Cannon, author of the study, Gearing Up for Hydrogen: America's Road to Sustainable Transportation.

Gearing Up for Hydrogen shows that the technology to power vehicles with hydrogen is ripe for development. The report indicates that hydrogen-powered buses are the true pioneers. While only twenty hydrogen buses are currently being tested on the world's roadways, more are expected. "Two companies -- Ballard in British Columbia, Canada, and Daimler-Benz in Germany -- have made the plunge to demonstrate hydrogen fuel cell buses," Cannon said. In September, the Chicago Transit Authority unveiled the first of three fuel cell buses made by Ballard to be "in revenue service". [ATTENTION BROADCASTERS: B-Roll available from Debby Roman of Ballard Power Systems, (604) 412-4740]

Fuel cells and batteries offer alternative ways of delivering electricity to electric vehicles. Batteries store electricity previously generated from an outside source. Fuel cells actually generate electricity on board the vehicle. However, the hydrogen fuel cell offers certain advantages over batteries. For example, refueling with hydrogen is quicker than recharging batteries, and most hydrogen storage systems are much lighter and smaller than batteries. "We all know that electric vehicles are two to three times more efficient than internal combustion gasoline engines," Cannon said. "What many people don't know is there is more than one way to power an electric vehicle."

Expanding the market for hydrogen fueled vehicles has enormous economic and environmental benefits. According James Cannon, hydrogen vehicles are an ideal alternative to our near total reliance on oil for transportation fuel, more than 50% of which comes from foreign sources. The Department of Energy estimates this costs the U.S. 72.1 billion dollars annually. "A shift to cleaner transportation fuels such as hydrogen," notes Cannon, "would reduce dependence on foreign sources of petroleum and stimulate the growth of a new high-tech industry. Supporting the fuel cell industry is a win-win proposition benefiting both the economy and the environment."

Emissions from gasoline and diesel vehicles are the largest source of air pollution in the U.S., accounting for half of all outdoor air pollution. Fine particle soot from diesel and automotive exhaust may be responsible for the premature death each year of as many as 50,000 people nationwide. Particularly distressing is the increased death rate for children with asthma -- up 78% from 1980 to 1993 due in large part to poor urban air quality. "America must turn the corner," Cannon said, "to a cleaner, more secure source of energy than imported oil."

In contrast to conventional internal combustion engines, fuel cell powered electric vehicles are zero-emission vehicles. Hydrogen, when joined with oxygen in fuel cells, produces electricity electrochemically, not through combustion. As a result, fuel cells do not form pollutants like nitrogen oxides that lead to smog. The only exhaust is water vapor.

Gearing Up for Hydrogen outlines six steps that federal leaders can take to expand the market for hydrogen-fueled vehicles. "Of particular importance, a simple reallocation of funds within our national energy program could spur the transition to hydrogen without reaching for new dollars," noted Mr. Cannon. Federal spending on hydrogen research still pales in comparison to spending on petroleum. The U.S. spends about 60 times more on petroleum research than on the national hydrogen budget.

Federal incentives would also help to stimulate the market for vehicles powered by alternative fuels like hydrogen. President Clinton has proposed a $6 billion, five-year incentive program to boost technologies that reduce carbon dioxide emissions. However, very little of the incentive would address transportation technologies -- perhaps only $300 million per year. According to James Cannon, Clinton's proposal is far too timid "considering that American consumers pay $300 million for gasoline every 17 hours."

INFORM Founder Joanna D. Underwood added: "Pollution generated by the almost 200 million cars, buses and trucks in this country is largely responsible for the huge air pollution in our cities and the health effects to children and adults. Whether we are concerned about our children's health, the national security threats posed by our reliance on foreign oil, or global climate change, a key culprit is the contaminants from vehicle tailpipes; the solution lies in cleaner alternative fuels such as hydrogen."

INFORM is a national nonprofit organization that identifies practical ways of living and doing business that are environmentally sustainable. For more than a decade, INFORM's reports on alternative transportation fuels and advanced vehicle technologies have been respected resources worldwide.