The EU Commission Proposes Eliminate Fossil Fuel Cars By 2035
On Wednesday, July 14th, the EU Commission just made a huge proposition concerning fossil fuel cars. The first part is to reduce current car emissions from new vehicles by 55% by 2030.
The second part is to reduce them by 100% by 2035, just five years later. To accomplish this, every new car produced would need to not produce any emissions. Thus, every car would need to be electric.
By comparison, the current goal is to reduce new car emissions by 37.5% and it was set in 2018.
Part Of A Larger Goal
This new proposition is part of a larger goal to reduce emissions for the EU.
It plans to cut emissions by 55% by 2030 and be the first continent to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050. The transportation sector is a huge part of reaching those goals as it accounts for 29% of emissions.
By ending the production of fossil fuel cars by 2035, that will give the entire continent 15 years to replace the existing gasoline-using vehicles. That said, it’s extremely unlikely that the entire car fleet will be replaced in that amount of time.
To encourage the electric vehicle expansion, the EU Commission will also increase the number of charge stations within all 27 countries. Along the highways, charging stations will be available every 37.3 miles.
This will create thousands of new jobs and help solve one of the biggest problems facing electric cars.
Car Manufacturers Are Willing
You might think that car manufacturers would be kicking and screaming, but they are surprisingly on board with it.
And it makes sense.
Let’s take a look at the situation. The government wants everybody to drive an electric car. That means you’re going to see a huge boost in business as the average consumer attempts to transition to an electric vehicle.
As a car manufacturer, it’s a win-win situation. You get to sell a new product to customers, and a majority of people want to lessen their impact on the environment. It also boosts your reputation.
However, there is one loser in this. Oil companies.
The inevitable switch from fossil fuel to electric cars is going to have a massive impact on oil sales. And that’s where the real resistance is coming from.
Eliminating Fossil Fuel Cars Will Crush Oil Companies
Ever wonder how much oil in a single barrel goes towards making gasoline?
Around 40% of the barrel.
The rest of the barrel goes towards a variety of other substances. One of the other primary uses is actually jet fuel, which is an entirely different problem the world needs to tackle.
Once gasoline demand shrinks, these companies will be in major financial trouble. This is why many are actually trying to diversify and move into renewable energy sources. Because it’s not only the transportation industry.
The energy sector is also trying to move away from fossil fuels for cleaner energy sources. The end result is going to leave little use for oil. If these companies want to survive, they need to change.
If they don’t hurry, millions of jobs will be impacted.
Robert has been following and writing about environmental stories for years at GreenGeeks. He believes that highlighting environmentally friendly practices can help promote change in every household.
