Southern Beale talks about the the TVA electric car conference in Nashville yesterday and gives credit to TVA and Gov. Bredesen for making Tennessee an EV leader.

Tennessee has been selected by the DOE to participate in a $2500 state rebate program for the first 1000 EVs purchased in the state. This is in addition to a $7500 federal tax credit. Gov. Bredesen announced the program at yesterday's conference. Even Sen. Lamar Alexander is on board.

I like the idea of electric vehicles, especially for local errands and trips downtown and such. At some point, manufacturers may need to look at standardized, interchangeable batteries for longer road trips. This way, you could pull into a "recharging" station and swap out your depleted battery for a freshly recharged one in a matter of minutes.

The big question mark is where will all the electric power come from? The answer at the moment seems to be more nuclear power plants, which is what Sen. Alexander and TVA are promoting. Southern Beale has the right idea, though. She has solar panels on the roof of her house.