LETTER: Hydrogen vehicles can save us from worst of climate change

To Ozaukee Press:
    An international group of experts has published a roadmap of the most viable solutions for slashing greenhouse gas emissions globally to zero by 2050. The group stated that it would be necessary to cut greenhouse gases by about 50% by the year 2030. During the 2021 Leaders Summit on Climate, President Biden challenged world leaders to combat climate change by meeting these same goals.

I feel that the time element of that reduction falls far short of what is needed. I believe that developing a hydrogen economy is doable, and with mass production efforts, it will be cheaper and far cleaner than anything that we are doing today. We should be able to slow down or even reverse global warming, but we must act soon.

California is showing the way. As of January 2021, there were 45 publicly accessible hydrogen refueling stations in the U.S., 43 of which were located in California. That state is supporting the adoption of zero-emission hydrogen fuel cell electric cars by expanding the network of 100 public hydrogen stations across California.

Hydrogen fuel-cell electric vehicles are critical to the state’s goal of getting
1.5 million zero-emission vehicles on California roads by 2025. They are also a vital part of the state’s work to achieve its climate change goals, improve air quality and reduce reliance on fossil fuels.

In 2006, Honda produced the Honda FCX Concept car as a hydrogen fuel-cell electric vehicle. It was a beautiful automobile and functioned very well. Honda stated that it would offer a device that would enable owners to electrolyze water to produce hydrogen for their cars. Later that offer disappeared. I would have been happy to carry out my early plans to purchase a fuel-cell automobile, produce my own hydrogen and thumb my nose when I’d drive past gasoline refueling stations. But at my age of 87 years,

I am not ready to carry out my dreams. It appears I was born 30 years too early. But notice that nearly all major automobile manufacturers of the world are finally producing fuel-cell autos, trucks, forklifts and even trains.

The sun provides Earth with more energy in one hour than the entire planet uses in one year. So why don’t we harness this free energy, which will last for four billion years? The solar energy is free forever. Hydrogen fuel-cell autos and trucks release no global-warming gases. Hydrogen can easily be produced by electrolyzing water as it breaks down into two parts of hydrogen and one part of oxygen. As the hydrogen passes through a fuel cell it produces electricity and pure, drinkable water as the only waste product.

Wayne Stroessner
Random Lake