EDITOR'S CHOICE

The Reckless Policies That Helped Fill Our Streets With Ridiculously Large Cars

29 Apr 2024 | Synopsis

"Dangerous, polluting SUVs and pickups took over America. Lawmakers are partly to blame."

"Bulky SUVs and pickup trucks - which have themselves steadily added pounds and inches - now comprise more than four out of every five new cars sold in the US...One of Congress's most consequential moves was creating the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards...CAFE has two of them: one for passenger cars... a separate, more lenient standard for ''light trucks''..."

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Why America Remains A Forbidden Land For Chinese Carmakers

29 Apr 2024 | Synopsis

"...among the approximately 1,500 auto and parts makers exhibiting this week, Chinese automakers stole the [2024 Beijing Auto] show with a mix of new models...One estimate puts that total at close to 100 carmakers, and when the dust finally settles, only around a dozen are expected to remain.

"The biggest challenge to Chinese carmakers selling in America is not price or sales tariffs. It’s a lack of dealer networks."

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What the Heck Is Seaweed Mining?

29 Apr 2024 | Synopsis

"Preliminary research suggests seaweed can trap and store valuable minerals. Is this the beginning of a new type of mining?

"...the [ARPA-E] agency has awarded US $5-million to three ventures investigating whether seaweed can serve as a practical source of critical materials, such as platinum and rhodium, as well as rare earth elements, including neodymium, lanthanum, yttrium, and dysprosium."

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Company Develops Innovative Magnetic Train That Can Operate With Existing Infrastructure: 'An Easily Usable Technology'

29 Apr 2024 | Synopsis

Italy's IronLev has developed a magnetic train that works on existing tracks...a fascinating breakthrough in the magnetic levitation rail world that could reduce costs, noise, and air pollution.

"...the test covered about 1.2 miles outside of Venice, hitting 43 mph...It works by utilizing the physics of magnetism to provide lift, push, and pull...IronLev's ability to integrate existing infrastructure greatly reduces rollout costs.."

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US's Power Grid Continues To Lower Emissions - Everything Else, Not So Much

29 Apr 2024 | Synopsis

"Excluding one pandemic year, emissions are lower than they've been since the 1980s.

"The [US DoE Energy Information Agency] assigns 80 percent of the 2023 reduction in US emissions to changes in the electric power grid... it's clear that the harder challenges are still coming, both in terms of accelerating decarbonization, and in terms of tackling sectors where decarbonization will be harder."

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Modern EV Batteries Rarely Fail: Study

26 Apr 2024 | Synopsis

"Plug-in electric vehicles' lithium-ion batteries have become less prone to failures in recent years."

"According to the data, the worst model year was 2011 with a 7.5% failure rate...In the next few years, it was 1.6-4.4%.

"...starting in 2016, there was a step change in the battery replacements due to failures, excluding recalls. It was as high as 0.5% starting in 2016, but in most cases, it was from 0.1% to 0.3%. That's an order of magnitude improvement."

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Give Us the Dumbphone EV

26 Apr 2024 | Synopsis

"Simpler electric vehicles would not only be cheaper — they’d last longer too."

"Dumbphones, though, are rugged and cheap. They do their job without fuss or pretense. They are an appliance, and they know it...This attitude needs to come to electric cars...Positioning EVs as fancy gadgets was a natural strategy to get Americans to lust after them...America needs a simpler, more affordable EV to help the transition to electric. [Pictured VW Beetle EV conversion]

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Why BYD's EV Exports Sell For Twice The China Price

26 Apr 2024 | Synopsis

"In some foreign showrooms, BYD charges more than double - sometimes nearly triple - the price it gets for three key models in China... In China, the midrange version sells for $19,283. In Germany, the little SUV is priced at $42,789

"The differential, in part, reflects cutthroat competition in China, the world's largest auto market, where dozens of EV brands are waging a price war...Hiking export prices gives BYD room to generate much larger profits per vehicle."

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NYC Dept. Of Transportation Authorizes Electric Cargo Bikes For Use On City Streets

26 Apr 2024 | Synopsis

"The rules adopted as amendments to the city's Traffic Rules specify that operating these 'pedal-assist commercial bicycles' within the city is 'lawful for delivery of goods and property in commerce,' and stated that they are under the same rules that apply to all bicycles.

"The definition says the e-cargo bikes can measure up to 4 feet wide and 16 feet long (which can include a trailer) and 7 feet high, and can have up to 4 wheels."

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Hydrogen Could Be Used For Nearly Everything. It Probably Shouldn't Be.

26 Apr 2024 | Synopsis

"Hydrogen might be a million tools in one, but some experts argue that it can’t do it all, and some uses could actually be distractions from real progress on emissions...The reality today is that hydrogen is much more of a climate problem than a solution...hydrogen production and use accounted for around 900 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions in 20...the focus should probably be on cleaning up production of the hydrogen we're already using for things like fertilizer."

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The Green Skills Gap: Educational Reform In Favour Of Renewable Energy Is Now Urgent

24 Apr 2024 | Synopsis

"The study demonstrates that 68% of all the world's energy educational degrees are still focused on fossil fuels and only 32% on renewable energy...The demand for green skills is particularly high in the developing countries of Central and South America, Africa, the Middle East and Eurasia...decarbonizing universities worldwide presents challenges due to resistance from various actors..."

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Quartz, Cobalt, And The Waste We Leave Behind

24 Apr 2024 | Synopsis

"Three books reveal just how tragic a toll the materials we rely on take for humans and the environment."

"...there is little evidence that we have decoupled our economy from its churning hunger for resources. 'For every ton of fossil fuels...we exploit six tons of other materials - mostly sand and stone, but also metals, salts, and chemicals...

"Simply shifting to 'sustainable' or 'cleaner' technologies doesn't eliminate the industrial fallout from our consumption."

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