Cars consume a third of U.S. iron and steel, a fifth of its aluminum and twothirds of its lead and r

1
Cars consume a third of U.S. iron and steel, a
fifth of its aluminum and two-thirds of its lead
and rubber. 

• World Watch Institute, December
  1998 www.worldwatch.org/alerts/981217.html

2
Worldwide, bicycles outnumber automobiles almost
2 to 1, but of all the trips taken in the U.S.
just 2/3 of 1 percent are made by bicycle. 

• Northwest Environment Watch, John Ryan, " Small
  Wonders Everyday Things for a Healthier Planet,"
  1999

3
If US cars and light trucks were a country, they
would be the fifth most polluting nation in the
world.  

• Environmental Defense, "Sinful Emissions,
  Weighing In on Automakers' Carbon Burdens," July
  2002

4
The typical SUV today has a fuel economy 29
percent lower than that of the average car,
resulting in a CO2 emissions rate roughly 40
percent higher.

• Environmental Defense, "Sinful Emissions,
  Weighing In on Automakers' Carbon Burdens," July
  2002

5
The 8.2 million barrels per day of fuel consumed
by U.S. automobiles nearly matches the amount of
oil produced by Saudi Arabia.

• Environmental Defense, "Sinful Emissions,
  Weighing In on Automakers' Carbon Burdens," July
  2002

6
Presently, U.S. oil production satisfies about
half of our nation's petroleum needs just
enough to fuel our cars and light trucks. The
remaining oil  (for heating and cooling, freight
and air travel, electricity production, and
industrial uses) is imported into the United
States from areas such as the Middle East.    

• Environmental Defense, 1999

7
A gallon of gasoline weighs 6 pounds, but when
burned and combined with oxygen in the air, the
resulting compound weighs nearly 20 pounds.    

• Environmental Defense, Carbon Emissions Fact
  Sheet, July 2002www.environmentaldefense.org/docu
  ments/2209_CarEmissionsFactSheet.pdf

8
The United States has the highest rate of carbon
emissions in the world, with close to 1,600
million metric tons of carbon released annually
(or about 25 percent of the world's total).  

• Environmental Defense, Carbon Emissions Fact
  Sheet, July 2002www.environmentaldefense.org/docu
  ments/2209_CarEmissionsFactSheet.pdf

9
Thirteen percent of the total global,
transportation-related carbon dioxide emissions
are released by airplanes.

• U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change,
  "Aviation and the Global Atmosphere," April 1999

10
Each year in the United States, 10 to 11 million
vehicles reach the end of their useful lives and
are taken out of service.    

• Environmental Defense, 1999

11
The hidden costs of driving in the U.S. amount to
at least 184 billion per year, including 40
billion for road costs not covered by fees and
tolls and 56 billion for health damage due to
air pollution.

• newdream.org

12
Developing countries are following the example of
rapid adoption of the automobile in 1996, more
new cars were sold in Asia than in Western Europe
and North America together.

• The Councils of the Royal Society of London and
  National Academy of Sciences' joint statement
  "Toward Sustainable Consumption," 1997.)

13
According to the EPA, 50 of urban automobile
trips are approximately five miles or less,
transport only one passenger, and travel at a low
speed
14
In the U.S., transportation accounts for 66 of
carbon monoxide emissions, 21 of particulate
material, 35 of volatile organic compounds, and
40 of nitrous oxides

• (Colorado Energy Talk Newsletter, U.S.
  Department of Energy Findings, Spring 1995, p.4.)

15
Jets on average need 40 more energy than cars to
move a passenger each mile

. Alan Thein Durning, How Much is Enough?,
Worldwatch Institute, 1992
16
Tip Ask your employer to take back your parking
space and give you a raise.
17
Don't speed! The U.S. Department of
Transportation says speeding can increase your
gas costs by 20

• Campaign on Auto Pollution

18
Vacation locally! Many of us take planes and cars
for faraway vacations, and miss many great (and
more affordable!) attractions right in our own
region of the country.

• newdream.org

19
Cluster errands and do them on your way to or
from work. Americans travel 60-100 further per
capita than Europeans, but the average trip
length is about the same (12.5 - 15 km).

• (Northwest Environmental coalition)