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GREENSBORO — Talk about great timing: As gas prices edge toward four bucks a gallon, an energy expert is headed to town with suggestions for how the Triad could wean itself from oil-based fuels.

The region could be well on its way toward oil independence by 2020, says David Morris, a hybrid-vehicle proponent and an energy adviser to four presidents during the past 30 years.

"North Carolina already has several pieces in place to eliminate its need for oil in the transportation sector," said Morris, keynote speaker Tuesday at a seminar at Proximity Hotel on renewable fuel and clean air.

Morris sees the path to oil freedom starting with today's hybrid cars, which alternate between gas and battery power.

They will evolve into autos powered almost exclusively by electricity, with auxiliary engines running primarily with biofuels, Morris said.

He will elaborate at the N.C. Mobile CARE Symposium and Awards, an annual event hosted by the N.C. Solar Center with the Triad Air Awareness program and the Piedmont Authority for Regional Transportation.

The CARE in the event title stands for "clean air, renewable energy."
During the proceedings, the N.C. State-based Solar Center will give awards to public agencies and businesses for technological innovations that have cut air pollution.

Also featured will be workplace programs that reward employees for using mass transit instead of cars, techniques for converting standard engines to run on natural gas, and a "Ride 'n' Drive" display of vehicles powered by biodiesel, plug-in electricity and more.

Morris advocates biofuels as a primary fuel for engines that autos would use only when batteries need recharging.

For average motorists, a car using plug-in electricity would not have to go very far on a single charge, Morris said.

"The average North Carolina resident travels less than 25 to 30 miles per day," said the co-founder and vice president of the 34-year-old Institute for Local Self-Reliance in Minneapolis.

Over time, technology will improve to get more distance and speed from electric motors, said Morris, whose nonprofit institute helps communities achieve environmentally sound economic growth.

But the best part of Morris' vision might be its impact on the wallet, considering that current gas prices cost the average motorist 13 cents a
mile.

By contrast, he said, the owner of an electric car would pay about 3 cents.

Contact Taft Wireback at 373-7100 or taft.wireback@news-record.com