California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) issued an executive order (EO) banning the sale of gasoline-powered passenger vehicles in 2035. Newsom’s September 23 directive, requires all new passenger vehicles sold in the state be “zero-emission by 2035,” and orders California’s Air Resources Board to develop regulations to ensure that “all operations of medium- and heavy-duty vehicles shall be 100 percent zero emission by 2045 where feasible.” As a result of Newsom’s EO the only new passenger vehicles … [Read more...]
California loses thousands of jobs and crucial fuel as Marathon Martinez refinery goes idle
California just experienced a catastrophic loss from the COIVD-19 impact on the economy, as one of its major refineries, Marathon Martinez, has just announced it will be idled indefinitely. With airlines and cruise ships virtually shut down, and vehicle transportation at an all-time low, the demand for fuels and petroleum derivative products manufactured from petroleum, are at an all-time low. The Northern California refinery, one of the largest in the state has just become a COVID … [Read more...]
Will the Global Economy Be Battered by Car Batteries?
In America and around the world, millions of people think electric vehicles (EVs) are the solution to all kinds of environmental problems---like smog, fine particulate pollution, and global warming. Save the planet! Drive a Leaf (or Volt or Tesla or ... the models multiply). But enormous technical problems face the transition from gasoline- or diesel-powered to battery-powered vehicles. Those problems are all rooted in one issue: energy density (energy stored by volume). Cubic inch for cubic … [Read more...]
Biofuels Forcing World to Ration Food Aid
The World Food Program is preparing to ration food aid for the world's hungriest poor. Why? Primarily because we're burning food in our automobiles. The rich-country mandates for biofuels have doubled and tripled world food prices in less than three years. The World Food Program's costs are rising by millions of dollars per week and the donations aren't, warns WFP executive director Josette Sheeran. The WFP is trying to feed more than 70 million people in 78 countries with voluntary … [Read more...]
