California pushes for 5 million zero-emission cars

SACRAMENTO, California — Gov. Jerry Brown on Friday outlined a $2.5-billion plan to subsidize electric vehicles and expand the network of charging stations as part of an ambitious goal of putting five million zero-emission vehicles on the road by 2030.

The goal, outlined in an executive order, is a significant expansion of Brown’s goal of selling 1.5 million zero-emission cars by 2025. It’s a nearly 15-fold increase over the 350,000 zero-emission vehicles currently on California’s roads.

It’s the latest step by Brown to advance his ambitious climate agenda during his final year in office. The $2.5 billion in spending still needs legislative approval.

Brown’s plan would expand subsidies to help people buy emission-free vehicles. It seeks to have 250,000 electric-vehicle charging stations and 200 hydrogen fueling stations.

California will need to reduce pollution from the transportation sector dramatically to reach its goal of reducing greenhouse gases 40 per cent below 1990 levels by 2030. Pollution from cars, trucks and other modes of transportation account for the largest portion of greenhouse gas emissions.

The state has successfully reduced emissions from power plants but has seen pollution from transportation inch up.

Brown proposes using money from a mixture of existing programs and the state’s cap-andtrade program, which caps pollution levels and auctions off permits to pollute.