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EPA Sets New Goals for Electric Vehicle Sales EPA Sets New Goals for Electric Vehicle Sales

By William Hentschel

A green sighn painted on asphalt "EV"
© 2023 Will Hentschel

Will Hentschel: THANK YOU TIM AND WANSHI. LAST YEAR, 13.8 MILLION CARS WERE SOLD IN THE UNITED STATES ALONE, BUT LESS THAN SIX PERCENT OF THEM WERE ELECTRIC VEHICLES. BY THE END OF THE DECADE, THE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY SAYS THAT NUMBER NEEDS TO BE OVER HALF.

SPECIFICALLY, 54 TO 60 PERCENT BY 2030. TENFOLD THE MODERN DAY SALES. BY 2032, THAT NUMBER JUMPS EVEN HIGHER FOR THE EPA TO 64-67 PERCENT.

INDIVIDUAL COMPANIES ARE ALSO SETTING THEIR OWN DEADLINES. BY 2030, AUTO GIANT FORD WANTS HALF OF ITS SALES TO BE ELECTRIC VEHICLES.

AND MAYBE THE MOST FAMOUS NAME IN ELECTRIC CARS, TESLA’S MODEL Y WAS THE MOST POPULAR EV OF 2022, WITH NEARLY 200-THOUSAND SOLD.

BUT THREE THINGS COULD REALLY GET IN THE WAY OF ELECTRIC VEHICLES TAKING OFF.

THE FIRST IS ACCESS TO CHARGING STATIONS THAT PEOPLE WILL NEED. ACCORDING TO PLUGSHARE, THERE ARE ABOUT 500 CHARGING STATIONS IN THE GREATER SYRACUSE AREA IN ONONDAGA COUNTY, BUT IF OVER HALF OF THE CAR SALES IN THE COUNTRY ARE GOING TO BE ELECTRIC IN THE COMING YEARS, THAT NUMBER WILL MOST LIKELY HAVE TO INCREASE.

THE SECOND IS LITHIUM. A GREAT SONG BY NIRVANA BUT A NECESSITY IN THE MAKING OF ELECTRIC CARS. RIGHT NOW, OVER HALF OF THE WORLDS LITHIUM IS MINED IN AUSTRALIA ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE PLANET. ONLY 1 PERCENT OF GLOBAL LITHIUM PRODUCTION IS DONE RIGHT HERE IN THE U-S-A. WHILE IT WOULD BE GREAT TO REOPEN VARIOUS LITHIUM MINES AROUND THE NATION, VARIOUS HEALTH AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS NEED TO BE ADDRESSED BEFORE THAT.

THE THIRD IS COST. ON AVERAGE, EVs ARE AROUND 11-THOUSAND DOLLARS MORE EXPENSIVE THAN THEIR GASOLINE-POWERED COUNTERPARTS, BUT THAT NUMBER HAS DROPPED NEARLY EVERY YEAR AS THEIR POPULARITY GROWS.

SO WE ASKED YOU, OUR VIEWERS IF YOU WOULD DRIVE AN ELECTRIC CAR IN THE NEAR FUTURE {{{{{TALK ABOUT RESULT}}}}}}

SYRACUSE, N.Y. (NCC NEWS) – The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has released a slew of new regulations that all gas-consuming vehicles must abide to, with the objective of fighting climate change.

In an effort to cut greenhouse gas emissions, the EPA has proposed a sales target for new car sales in the United States. By 2030, the EPA wants over half of all car sales in the country to be totally electric, a massive jump from under six percent in 2022. By 2032, the EPA wants that number even higher, at least 64%. Other individual companies, like Ford, have expressed a desire to have half of new car sales be electric by the new decade.

“It’s a dream come true for those of us who know we need to decarbonize our society and certainly our cars and trucks,” Fred Krupp, president of the Environment Defense Fund said.

Transportation pollution is the largest contributor of greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S., and accounts for 27% of all carbon emissions.

However, there are plenty of hurdles that need to be dealt with before EVs are more popular than their internal combustion counterparts. The first will be the demand for charging stations and the demand on the existing electrical grid. In Onondaga County today, there are about 500 charging stations of various types, but many of them are centered in the city of Syracuse itself. Once you get into the suburbs, publically accessible EV chargers are hard to come by. But this is offset by the fact that in-house charging is a possibility.

The second issue is Lithium. The lightest metal on the periodic table is the element of choice for electric car batteries. Right now, over half of the worlds lithium is mined in Australia. The next largest producer is Chile, with 25%. Just like gasoline, it would be far cheaper to mine and refine lithium in the United States, but a number of health and environmental concerns needed to be addressed before it becomes more common on American soil.

Lastly, there is cost. electric cars cost around $11,000 more than gas cars. However, this is expected to go down as American car companies like General Motors start manufacturing its own batteries in factories across the nation.

While the goals set by the EPA may be lofty, they could be necessary in ensuring the health of our planet.

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