New gas-powered cars will no longer be allowed to be sold in California come 2035.
Wednesday, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed an executive order Wednesday that requires by 2035 all new cars and passenger trucks sold in the state be zero-emission vehicles.
According to a press release from the state, transportation causes over half of California’s carbon pollution, 80% of smog-forming pollution and 95% of toxic diesel emissions.
Newsom’s order comes in the name of climate change.
“This is the most impactful step our state can take to fight climate change,” Newsom said. “For too many decades, we have allowed cars to pollute the air that our children and families breathe. Californians shouldn’t have to worry if our cars are giving our kids asthma. Our cars shouldn’t make wildfires worse – and create more days filled with soky air. Cars shouldn’t melt glaciers or raise sea levels threatening our cherished beaches and coastlines.”
Californians will still be allowed to own and sell gas-powered cars in 2035.
The state predicts that Newsom’s order will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 35% and improve oxides of nitrogen emissions from cars statewide by 80%.
Newsom is also going after commercial vehicles as well. The Air Resources Board will mandate that all operations of medium- and heavy-duty vehicles be 100% zero-emission by 2045, where feasible. Drayage trucks will have until 2035 to be emission free.
The state is requiring agencies to partner with the private sector “to accelerate deployment of affordable fueling and charging options.”
The order also orders agencies to build up the state’s rail and transit network and support bicycle options, especially in low-income communities.
Beyond vehicle emissions, Newsom’s executive order targeted 2024 for the state to eliminate permits for hydraulic fracturing – otherwise known as fracking.
