Electric Cars

* Your editorial of Feb. 6 (“Recharging the Electric Idea”) overstated sentiment for the electric car among Northeast states making up the Ozone Transport Region. The vote was nine to four to petition EPA for a low-emission vehicle program similar to California’s. The vote specifically excluded an electric car mandate.

Take the four states voting against the California program (even without the electric car mandate), add at least two others that demanded deletion of an electric car mandate before voting yes, and you get a much clearer picture of where the Northeast stands on the practicality of an electric car over the next decade.

With respect to the California LEV program, note, too, that only four states in the OTC region commissioned independent studies on the subject, and all four studies concluded there were better and less costly alternatives to the California program for those states.

The EPA ought to give serious consideration to these studies as it weighs the OTC petition. The EPA may also consider an alternative car proposed by the auto makers, one that seriously addresses air quality in the Northeast, but at far less cost to the consumer.

Even without an electric car requirement, a costly program designed for California to deal with its unique problem should not be forced on states on the other side of the country.

J. D. TURK

Eastern States Petroleum

Advisory Group