Question: Why is it environmentally better to drive a electric car than a gas powered car, as the electricity to charge the car comes from fossil fuel burning power plants?

Reply:

It's not always cut and dry. But there are huge economies of scale when generating power in a central power plant. Domestic coal v. imported petroleum. Point-source pollution v. putting power plant well away from population. Some pollution is easier to mitigate in a boiler/power plant than in an internal combustion engine. Some of the electricity could come from wind, nuclear, hydro, etc.

But it's a fair question, as things that seem environmentally friendly on the end usage often involve environmentally degrading things upstream. A quick ramp up in electric vehicles would require a quick ramp up in electric power plants. Hugely expensive and time consuming. If it is done wrong, then the climatic impact could still be a net negative, though pollution in urban areas would be reduced. Clean air is nothing to scoff at.

So it's not a simple answer or a single answer, really. Don't know whether it's a good answer.

James Neff, Physics, College of Charleston