All politics are local,” or so the saying goes. Though I’ve never acted — or written — like it, the phrase does have some truth to it. When considering a nationwide issue, such as cutting down on carbon, it’s worthwhile to consider what exactly is being done on a local level.

And just what is local? For many ISU students who shop and rent in Ames and have done so for many years, it’s the town in its entirety. But while Ames provides areas for carbon-related discussions — on the pro side, this summer’s free CyRide, and on the con side, Ames’ lack of an efficient citywide recycling program — the carbon-cutting efforts that involve the most students, to the greatest extent, are those to which their tuition dollars go.

While many efforts exist, the most visible seem to be the new electric vehicles — in both car and truck form — on campus.

Arriving on campus in the fall of 2008, the small electrics have been humming from one part of campus to another for almost a year, moving lightweight supplies and small numbers of people.

While acknowledging that they lack the comforts of power steering, power windows, radios and high-powered air conditioning and heating — not to mention speed, as they top out at about 25 mph — Bob Currie, assistant director of facilities services, said in May that “the electric vehicles have been well-received by people. For the bulk of what they do, the vehicles are a good substitute.”

Positive public opinion of the carbon-cutters should not come as a surprise.

The vehicles perform their actions while emitting no carbon, as compared to an estimated average of 3.4 tons emitted by each of the facilities’ combustion engine vehicles. Additionally, as is a point of pride in Iowa more than perhaps any other state, the gasless movers do not rely on oil imported from those many allegedly evil regimes that politicians love to deride in public yet profit from on their investment sheets.

Furthermore, these transporters can do their environmental good year-round. As Currie reported, last winter the vehicles became fully charged in six to eight hours while plugged in outdoors overnight, started without incident on even the most bone-chilling mornings — which is more than could be said for my Toyota 4Runner last year — and ran well throughout the day without ever fully using up their charges.

But a major downside must lie in the cost, right?

Well, somewhat. Iowa State paid between $17,000 and $21,000 for each of its electrics, while replacement trucks could have been had cheaply, especially considering the government’s “Cash for Clunkers” program.

But when one factors in the fact that an electric vehicle uses about 13 cents worth of electricity per day to stay charged, as opposed to the $3.49 worth of fuel that each of Iowa State’s pickup trucks, minivans and Gator-type gassers requires, this isn’t so daunting. In fact, Currie estimated that an electric vehicle’s gas savings will make up for its higher sticker price in roughly five years.

So with all this electric exaltation, one might think the ISU community’s carbon-cutting job is done. Not so. With the aforementioned “Cash for Clunkers” policy, there was no better time for Iowa State to replace some of its trucks by purchasing — or, who knows, maybe even enlisting its fine engineering students to build — more electric vehicles.

But which gas-guzzlers to start with? While each college could likely find a use for an electric, the clear answer is the parking enforcement trucks that patrol the lots.

Not that I have anything against their drivers, who are merely doing their jobs and trying to earn a buck, but it’s completely unnecessary that they drive trucks. When it’s warm enough, they should bike or walk — or, for those wishing to remain in the ’90s, maybe even roller blade — from lot to lot, and when it’s too cold for this they should drive electrics.

With thousands of students having descended upon Ames in the last week and hundreds upon hundreds of parking tickets to be issued soon, the revenue stream exists to support this. Given the number of hateful yellow envelopes tucked under windshield wipers every day, parking ticket fees could likely support the purchase of a new electric each month.

Then maybe students would be more likely to pay them.

– Steve Adams is a graduate student in journalism and mass communication from Annapolis, Maryland.