CA Mandates all trucks must be electric beginning in 2024

[fastpakr]

I've said this before, what is the purpose of an electric vehicle when the power required to charge said vehicle is coming from coal anyway? Unless your grid is powered by nuclear energy all you've done by using an electric vehicle is shift the emissions from one point to another. I think things like that should be factored into decisions before making laws about this crap.

Coal is less than a quarter of electrical production now. Natural gas is far greater, and the rest is mostly a mix of renewables and nuclear.

 

[Dirtman]

Coal is less than a quarter of electrical production now. Natural gas is far greater, and the rest is mostly a mix of renewables and nuclear.

I realize this. But for example, my power still comes from coal plants. Im sure plenty of places in California are too. So a statewide law doesn't make sense to me if the state/federal government isn't first insuring that all the areas they want to require these things are able to charge those vehicles cleanly. My point is simply that the law should only be used if, when, and where clean power is guaranteed. The lawmakers shouldn't shift burden to the consumer without making things green on their end first.

 

[adsm08]

I've said this before, what is the purpose of an electric vehicle when the power required to charge said vehicle is coming from coal anyway? Unless your grid is powered by nuclear energy all you've done by using an electric vehicle is shift the emissions from one point to another. I think things like that should be factored into decisions before making laws about this crap. California wants all these electric vehicles but have they prepared the electric grid to handle the extra load or ensured its clean enough that it won't be producing just as much emissions as the trucks themselves did?

What, expect people to use science and reason and facts and stuff to make decisions instead of emotion and fear and feel-good warm fuzzies? Ridiculous.

 

[stmitch]

I realize this. But for example, my power still comes from coal plants. Im sure plenty of places in California are too.

CA pretty much leads the nation in alternative energy production. As of 2018, 0.15% of the electricity produced in the state, and 3.3% of the electricity consumed by the state comes from coal. This stuff is easy to google:

2018 Total System Electric Generation

www.energy.ca.gov

Coal is going away quickly all over the US. It's cheaper and cleaner to use natural gas now. You getting power from coal now doesn't mean you're likely to get your power from coal in 10 years, or when laws like this will become more common. In Mid-2019, "Renewables" generated more electricity in the US than coal, not because renewables are growing like crazy (they're increasing, but it's not crazy growth), but more because coal is going away quickly:

U.S. electricity generation from renewables surpassed coal in April - U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA)

www.eia.gov

We have this same debate every time anything related to EVs comes up. The science is pretty clear that even with higher environmental impacts during production, and even with electricity generated from coal, EVs are still better for human health and the environment in pretty short order thanks to the lack of tailpipe emissions doing damage on a local level:

How clean are electric vehicles? Evidence-based review of the effects of electric mobility on air pollutants, greenhouse gas emissions and human health

There is a growing need for a broad overview of the state of knowledge on the environmental aspects of Electric Vehicles (EVs), which could help polic…

www.sciencedirect.com

Charging An Electric Vehicle Is Far Cleaner Than Driving On Gasoline, Everywhere In America

New research shows just how much cleaner driving an electric vehicle is than driving on gasoline, regardless of where it charges: EVs average 80 miles per gallon emissions equivalent across the U.S. - and reach as high as 191 MPG in New York State.

www.forbes.com

In Florida, an EV (including charging) has similar environmental impact to a (non-existant) ICE that gets 58mpg

Here's a cool comparison tool that will allow you to compare an ICE, a PHEV and a BEV in your specific location to see which might be better for your specific power generation source:

How Clean is Your Electric Vehicle?

Enter your ZIP code to see EV emissions in your area—or select specific EV models to see how they compare.

evtool.ucsusa.org

 

[Eddo Rogue]

You are messing up a perfectly good fantasy with facts, please stop that

Electricity comes out of the wall, so clean energy, just makes sense that an electric vehicle would be clean as well, "they" just need to add a wall inside somewhere, DUH

Sometimes reality is just plain inconveinent, so ignore it, works for me

Reality is the leading cause of stress.

 

[Jim Oaks]

Maybe more windmill farms will be filling the skyline of California in the future

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

FWIW I live just north of the big "transcontinental railroad"

Coal trains are way down, almost getting kind of rare to hear/see a train go by in general anymore. When I was a kid it seemed like every half hour there was a loaded coal train going east or an empty one going west. When they had two lines the whole way you might see both at the same time.

Our power is from coal though, they keep adding to the plant making it bigger so I doubt they are going to close it any time soon.

Maybe more windmill farms will be filling the skyline of California in the future

Sadly... probably.

On a clear night before I turn onto my road the horizon is full of blinking red lights from the stupid things like 40-50 miles away.

My dad and brother had a really neat bluff they would check out when they went antelope hunting in Wyoming every year. They dozed the top 2/3's off and made it a windmill farm a few years ago.

 

[stmitch]

FWIW I live just north of the big "transcontinental railroad"

Coal trains are way down, almost getting kind of rare to hear/see a train go by in general anymore. When I was a kid it seemed like every half hour there was a loaded coal train going east or an empty one going west. When they had two lines the whole way you might see both at the same time.

Our power is from coal though, they keep adding to the plant making it bigger so I doubt they are going to close it any time soon.

A lot of coal plants are converted to natural gas rather than torn down. It's way cheaper and easier than building all new or getting permission from regulators to build new.

In a related note, watching freight trends like that can be pretty interesting. The tracks near me have gotten much quieter in recent months, but are beginning to pick back up. When times were good, the trains heading south were either grain or bulk steel and the trains heading north were all vehicles. Now they seem to be pretty random collections of whatever.

 

[Dirtman]

There is a fundamental and undeniable problem with using electric vehicles.

Electric motors is no goes vroom.

 

[RonD]

Yes, need to put cards in the spokes to get back the vroom, oh and spoked wheels of course

 

[1986RangerXL]

I thought they had to add a noise for the blind people?

 

[RonD]

Why would the drivers need a noise?

Oh, you mean blind pedestrians, oops

I thought you meant drivers in my city, I swear they license sight impaired people here

 

[snoranger]

In a related note, watching freight trends like that can be pretty interesting. The tracks near me have gotten much quieter in recent months, but are beginning to pick back up. When times were good, the trains heading south were either grain or bulk steel and the trains heading north were all vehicles. Now they seem to be pretty random collections of whatever.

The what?

@Dirtman

 

[scotts90ranger]

Why would the drivers need a noise?

Oh, you mean blind pedestrians, oops

I thought you meant drivers in my city, I swear they license sight impaired people here

I'm pretty sure it's just a country wide "brain impaired" instant licencing program the people that aren't brain impaired can't access or view, most likely crosses the boarder... I've been around a bit and it seems to be everywhere...

 

[rusty ol ranger]

California mandate: Commercial trucks go electric starting in 2024, all-EV by 2045

New regulation adopted in the Golden State will require 100,000 battery electric and fuel-cell trucks by 2030 and 300,000 by 2035.

www.greencarreports.com

is this even possible?

As a truck driver....

All this is going to do is drive up costs of products in CA.

Why? No one will deliver there.

Battery power would have to come A LONG WAY to get even half way to what a diesel is capable of. I can run my ISX 15 1500 miles between 20 minute fillups.

Not to mention the 80,000 lb gross weight limits would have to be majorly raised inorder for the trucks to carry enough battery to even make it 1/2 that range (in the real world)

Take into account our already aged bridges/roads....thats not going to happen.

CA is shooting themselves in the nuts....like usual.