China To Ban Fossil Fuel Vehicles - The Question Is How Soon?

The end is near. Doom and gloom.

Deny all you want but ICE days are numbered. China is the last draw. GM and Ford continue to drag their feet and beg the US government to save them - they are currently fighting Chinese stricter emission regulations and losing. Time for the US to get serious with EV.

How long are you going to suck Al Gore's abundant teats?

Oh nonsense - China has the same problem the US has - it may be possible in Suburban areas to require non-ICE vehicles - which means going back to Bicycles for most people - they have a huge problem in their URBAN and RURAL areas. The chinese live in cities with the least amount of space of developed nations - there are few real private homes except the very rich - and I mean VERY RICH.

There exists NO infrastructure in the cities and rural areas that could support CHARGING all these evs - most buildings do not even have their own parking. In many rural areas - they do not even have electricity.

Certainly there still does not exist a long distance solution for TRUCK transportation -- and the existing electric grid already is bursting at the seams. Communist or not - taking away the cars with no replacement - would be REVOLUTION times.

Now - add in that the predominant method of power generation in China is still COAL - and evs will only kill the economy - without helping the air.

As far as the USA - our power grids are also deficient - Many of our cities have the same problem - no infrastructure at all - and no place to put it. People who live in an apartment and park on the street - will not be able to put a charger in front of their house because they don't own the parking space and cannot be sure where their car will be parked.

The availability of 229 volt 3 phase lines is still limited to Urban areas - and highly populated suburban areas - rural areas don't have that option.

50 years from now- EVS will still be ONLY a partial solution to the problem - maybe 30-40% - and there will be others - like Fuel Cells - and others - that will also be partial solutions - but I would bet that even then - ICE vehicles will still exist - if nothing more - MATT will still be racing his TVR!

@TomM: you should be glad you'll no longer need to work in the near future, hence the demise of ICE would not affect you personally - it will however benefit your descendants greatly.

Matt on the other hand will have to find a new skill if he wants to stay relevant, or he can continue to sell used ICE clunkers.

@TomM wrote "As far as the USA - our power grids are also deficient - Many of our cities have the same problem - no infrastructure at all - and no place to put it. People who live in an apartment and park on the street - will not be able to put a charger in front of their house because they don't own the parking space and cannot be sure where their car will be parked. "

That's why I keep saying the US needs to get serious about EV - not only at the consumer level but from top down with stronger government mandates so that the auto and energy industries must comply. Since the EU and China are already or about to be "ALL-IN", what's the US to do ? Join the Russians ?

When you can see the smog at street level and have to wear a mask when you go outside, the Chinese know they need to do something. Local mfg's do not have the tech today to crank out BEV's for everyone. They need fewer cars and trucks on the road and more public transit use. Perhaps you can only drive on odd numbered days. Carpooling required. Who knows. Their case is extreme. It will be interesting to see what they decide to do.

Pollution is NOT a Chinese problem. It's everywhere. If you're a Canadian as your username suggests, you should know that Canada with its vast territory is severely affected by acid rain - a direct consequence of fossil fuel pollution.

According to the Government of Canada website on Environment, "more than half of Canada consists of susceptible hard rock (i.e., granite) areas that cannot neutralize the effects of acid deposition. Lakes and soils found in areas of the Canadian Shield in northeastern Alberta, northern Saskatchewan and Manitoba, and parts of western British Columbia are as defenseless to acid rain as those in eastern Canada."

For those who think the earth is so large GHG emission does not affect you, please do some reading on the subject and open your mind. Don't think you are too small to make a difference.

HenryN. The article is about a Chinese problem as was my comment. Of course pollution in all its forms and resulting side effects (acid rain) is a global problem. But even on the worse summer days in Canadian cities we can still see the sky, the clouds and planes going by. You can't say the same for major cities in China. We also don't wear masks to work or when we leave the house. Being offended by my on point comment on "behalf" of the nation isn't necessary, it just distracts from the discussion. To QEW's point, if there are perhaps 50M to 300M 2 stroke scooters on the roads of China, as well a lots of coal power production plants, they have their work cut out for them. You will see a much swifter change in China being a command and control Communist Country. I wish them luck.

@CANADIANCOMMENTS: I wasn't offended at all by your comment. I brought it up to show that Canada with its small population and large territory still suffers from global pollution caused by someone else (largely US energy industry). The problem with China pollution will not be confined to China so everyone must play a role in keeping the world clean - no matter how small that role is.

As soon as Kia introduces an EV, Darringer will be the first guy in here telling us how wonderful it is.

Psst... Kia has introduced one, the Soul EV, and is about to introduce several others.

China is dead serious about pollution and cleaning its shit up. One of the factories where I have parts made was shut down for a month by the Chinese EPA equivalent as well as many other companies and foundries as they try to clean things up.

What they really need to do is to ban all the scooters and 2 cycle motors. Secondly they need to add a secondary fuel source to increase the BTU of the coal plants to get a clean combustion as was developed and proven by Ontario Power Generation and use more scrubbers to reduce particulate matter further.

Now I am going to have to air freight in 1200 lbs of parts so that my production stays on time. This will cost me thousands more in freight costs and dump even more GHG high up in the atmosphere where it is most destructive (vs ground level). The environmentalist in me (I'm an old hippy) is so against this but if I don't deliver orders on time I will loose fortune 500 customers. The irony -damned if you do and damned if you don't.

According to my girlfriend who lives in Shanghai the air quality is starting to improve but still has a long way to go.

Agreed on the scooters - but it's a hard problem to fix due to its sheer volume thanks to low cost and lax emission regulation for these small vehicle. This is a common problem for third world Asian countries (including major portions of China and India). Many Asian cities already have plans to ban these scooters in the near future. It's inevitable Electric scooters will be the alternative.

I once was offered a job by a US company with operations in western China. The offer was lucrative but required extended stays in the area. A few trips to China convinced me that it was not worth it - purely because of the air quality.

Why so angry Bob ?? Still hung over.

Have you even read the agreement! Do your research so you don't sound ignorant. You are in the very minority on climate change and the Paris Climate Agreement. Think about being proactive in life and not reactive and it might change for the best. You also have to think of someone other than yourself. Don't start sounding like MDumbass on every post.

@Henry, Sir so your solution is Government sanctioned violence to create the outcome. Sir that is the opposite of liberty and freewill. Do you condone that kind of action. To create the outcome by force? EV, fuelcell or ICE should be left to the consumer. Freedom of choice by voluntary choices. People who believe in the religion of "green." Please keep in mind Al Gore generates 20 times+ the average American household of 4 and goes around in a private jet and has made hundreds of millions in carbon credits. We will be reduced to controlled checkmate by tracking and controlling us by trains or other "public transportation." Are you a free citizen or a 21st century surf? I beg you to ponder these thoughts. Thank you.