Rising Gas Prices Mean Americans Should Go Green

SAM LUO (Opinions Editor)

With the catalyst of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, President Joe Biden has been the ultimate scapegoat for rising gas prices since late February. Though his administration has little to do with the recent surge, Americans are understandably incensed about the current state of the economy, inflation and all. There are multiple variables that contribute to the current price of gasoline in the United States, and no simple solution except, maybe, that Americans should finally start looking toward renewable-resources. 

For context, California has laws in place that regulate the quality of the oil distributed at its gas stations. Severin Borenstein, an economist at the University of California, Berkeley, has pointed out in the New York Times that an issue in the regulatory sector that produces California’s exclusive blend of cleaner, greener gasoline may be the issue. Thus, record-breaking gas prices are felt especially in the most metropolitan areas of California, namely Los Angeles, which has breached the $6 mark compared to the national average of $4.24 per gallon, according to the American Automobile Association. 

Conversely, the cost to fully charge an electric vehicle as opposed to filling up a gasoline-powered vehicle is remarkably cheaper. For a model like the 150-mile range electric Nissan LEAF, charging at home with the average cost of 18 cents per kilowatt hour would come out around $7 for a full charge. 

In just the U.S. alone, emissions from cars and trucks on the road account for about one-fifth of all greenhouse gasses emitted from this country, according to a study by Lewis & Clark College. Unlike Luxembourg and other countries whose public transport is free and widely accepted as a conventional means of travel, the United States is seriously behind. 

At some point, the Earth will be depleted of its oil deposits. Unsustainable as gas power is, it is not entirely up to governments and politicians to prevent global warming. Americans have the facts and the capacity to help make this planet last.