California to use hybrid trucks
California’s doing well on the green stakes lately. It may have more cars than practically anywhere else but, in addition to last week’s announcement that it will receive the first renewably sourced hydrogen filling station (Shell) and the first hydrogen cars (Honda), the California Air Resources Board has approved a comprehensive draft to cut greenhouse gas emissions in the state by 30 per cent within 12 years.
According to the Cunningham Report, a US transport news publication, the draft includes several proposed regulations to reduce emissions from trucks and from ships docked in California ports.
More from the Cunningham Report:
The plan, which details the main strategies California would use to reduce climate-changing GHGs, contains a mix of strategies, including regulations, voluntary measures and fees. Regulation of the transportation sector is one component, but the plan also focuses on numerous other elements, including energy efficiency and industrial sources.
Regarding transportation, the Air Board’s draft plan doesn’t delve too much into specifics but calls for, among other things:
- A regulation to require improved efficiency for heavy duty trucks.
- Hybridization of urban and short-haul trucks.
- Development and implementation of the Low Carbon Fuel Standard that require oil companies to make cleaner domestically produced fuels.
Other measures the CARB included in the draft plan include a regulation to require ship electrification at ports, the installation of 3,000 MW of solar-electric capacity under California’s existing solar programs, and a high-speed passenger rail system from San Francisco to Anaheim.
