California's ambitious $10 billion blueprint for net-zero

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California Governor Gavin Newsom has announced a monumental $10 billion (€8.95 billion) investment package for zero-emission vehicles (ZEV) to accelerate the automotive sector's transition away from fossil fuels.

The US state, which is currently home to nearly 40 million people, has a massive problem with air pollution due to its high population density, mountainous terrain and hot climate which is only exacerbated by fossil fuel use.

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One study by the California Air Resources Board estimates as many as 90% of residents breathe in unhealthy levels of one or more different pollutants.

Particularly high population areas, such as Los Angeles also suffer from heavy smog levels.

"The future is electric, and we’re making it easier and cheaper than ever before to go electric," Newsom said in a statement. "That means more assistance to help folks buy clean cars and more charging stations in more communities throughout the state.

“California is eliminating our dependence on oil and providing a blueprint for the entire world on how to aggressively fight the climate crisis while growing the state’s clean energy economy."

Back in September 2020, Newsom unveiled a plan to shift the entire state's automotive sector away from fossil fuels to EVs by 2035, pledging around $3.9 billion (€3.49 billion).

Electric vehicles have become one of the state's largest exports. In 2020, California made $5.7 billion from exporting electric vehicles alone. The Governer's Office estimates that California makes up half of the US's EV market.

“To achieve California’s climate goals we must focus on the needs of the most polluted and underserved neighbourhoods. Governor Newsom’s ZEV investment proposal recognizes this reality,” said Alvaro Sanchez, the Vice President of Policy at nonprofit NGO The Greenlining Institute.

The new plans will see Newsom's administration inject a further $6.1 billion into the scheme announced last year, which will go towards innovation to make EVs more affordable in a state with a notoriously high cost of living, while also building new infrastructure such as the plethora of charging stations that will be necessary for the transition.

Significant investments include:

  • $256 million for low-income consumer purchases, and $900 million to expand affordable and convenient ZEV infrastructure access in low-income neighbourhoods
  • Over $3 billion into introducing electric vehicles into public transport, such as school bus links, public bus routes, truck fleets, off-road equipment and an additional $400 million for port electrification
  • $419 million to provide zero-emissions transport links to low-income areas
  • $200 million investment into demonstration and pilot projects in high carbon-emitting sectors, such as maritime, aviation, rail and other off-road applications, as well as support for vehicle grid integration at scale

The state has also pledged to ban the sale of fossil-fuel-powered cars by 2035 and is mandating truck fleets make the switch by 2045.

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It has also made moves to stop oil drilling in local communities, attempted to end fracking and claims to have created nearly 500,000 jobs in clean energy.

- The full pledge can be read here.

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