The Next Clean Truck Regulation in California
Another law aiming at converting more automobiles to zero-emission engines is being considered by the California Air Resources Board.
Agriculture and transportation organizations are voicing concerns about pricing, delayed technology, and inadequate charging infrastructure ahead of a hearing on the Advanced Clean Fleets (ACF) plan on Thursday. The increased burden on ports is raising concerns about more supply chain disruptions.
"If demand picks up over the next couple of years, we're going to have some major challenges," Chris Shimoda, senior vice president of government affairs at the California Trucking Association, told Agri-Pulse. "We're doing all we can to avoid learning the lessons of the previous couple of years," says California.
The shipping issue at California's seaports shown that "it doesn't take much to fully derail our commodities transportation system and supply chain." Inflation and the possibility of a recession have dampened consumer demand and contributed to the easing of the crisis, but the system remains fragile, he said.
The draft regulation before the CARB board of directors would establish a 2040 goal for switching the majority of California's medium- and heavy-duty truck and bus fleets to zero-emissions. Drayage operators would be the first to suffer the effects, beginning in 2024 with the purchase of any new vehicles. Staff at the agency reasoned that these activities had a disproportionate impact on communities, and that short hauls are better suited to the move to electric trucks.
In 2020, CARB passed a separate Advanced Clean Trucks regulation that compels manufacturers to offer ZEVs as a proportion of their yearly sales. By 2035, the obligation may cover up to 75% of their revenues.
CARB predicts that with the two requirements combined, more than 1.5 million ZEV trucks and buses will be on the road by 2050. ACF focuses on both greenhouse gas emissions and local nitrogen oxide emissions that harm socially disadvantaged populations. According to a staff assessment, the regulation will assist to save more than 5,000 lives from air pollution and save more than $57 billion in healthcare expenses.
Despite the aggressive schedule, environmental organizations argue that it is insufficient to avert the worst impacts of climate change. The Sierra Club of California has proposed a ban on all diesel truck sales by 2036.
"As it is, [ACF] would not go far enough to protect our communities from dangerous air pollution generated by trucks," says Josue Aguilar, a Natural Resources Defense Council policy advocate. "This is a question of environmental justice." Communities of color and low-income neighborhoods are more likely to be near major freight routes and so vulnerable to pollution."
A combination of agricultural and industry trade groups also wants substantial adjustments to the program. However, the groups are concerned that the concept would be impracticable in practice and would jeopardize the supply of crucial products and services to Californians.
"Throughout the entire rulemaking process, California's corporate and public sector stakeholders have consistently flagged major implementation difficulties that have been ignored," the coalition wrote to the board. "There is a tremendous lot of financial uncertainty in California, and it is detrimental to cultivate extra worry and probable pain."
The Western Agricultural Processors Association's technical services director, Chris McGlothlin, told Agri-Pulse that the accelerated schedule is alarming. Businesses that invest in low-emission trucks to meet present standards must replace those vehicles within the next 17 years, he says.
"Even with the natural gas ones, they were taking a huge step toward decreasing the amount of pollutants related with their drayage trucks," he explained. "Now they have to pay a couple hundred thousand dollars extra for an electric piece of equipment alone, without even considering charging stations and future power expenses."
CARB is putting low-carbon projects on notice that internal combustion engines are on their way out, according to Shimoda, even though farmers have invested millions in installing dairies with digesters that can absorb and convert methane into biogas for sale via the natural gas pipeline.
"It obviously sends the message that the investments may not pay off in the long run," he added.
Charging infrastructure and grid stability are two main roadblocks to ACF's success. To fulfill the charging demand for trucks, California, according to Shimoda, needs to construct 336 chargers per week until 2035. The grid would need to deliver an additional 65 megawatts each week to support those chargers. This would enable around 290,000 electric trucks, which is still far short of the 2040 target. New charging station projects under construction now boast just 2-10 megawatts at a time.
Shimoda is concerned about the increased demand on local circuits, because upgrading utilities' upstream infrastructure to accommodate many new projects would take years. A trucker who purchases a costly electric truck would have to wait five years before plugging it in. Shimoda pointed out that ACF presently does not enable exclusions where a retail charging facility is not accessible. And those sole proprietors are already straining to comply with California's AB 5 independent contractor regulations.
The current electric trucks on the market require at least four hours to charge. Shimoda wondered how an owner-operator, or even a bigger company, could continue in business with such inadequate time management. To account for the increased personnel and equipment expenses, their transportation rates would climb.
There is fear that the rule may exacerbate delays in the agricultural supply chain.
The electric versions cannot handle a load for a travel of 200 miles or more from the Central Valley to ports in Los Angeles, Long Beach, or Oakland on a single charge. Agricultural exporters are frequently at the mercy of ocean carriers, with just a few hours' notice required to transport a container to a ship.
When it comes to responding to harvest demands, electric vehicles create even more obstacles. The employment is seasonal, but it involves lengthy days with no breaks for a four-hour fee. Rural expanding regions have long-distance and sometimes insufficient grid connectivity. The trucks also add 8,000 pounds to the battery weight, causing payloads to be exhausted early.
"There is just no way to accomplish a harvest in California with today's zero-emission technology," Shimoda added.
WAPA's McGlothlin hopes to gain an exemption for drayage vehicles at agricultural facilities, distinguishing them from more popular package distribution hubs.
Aside from grid access and truck availability difficulties, McGlothlin expressed little trust in utilities' capacity to satisfy California's increasing energy demand in the coming years.
"We're a month distant from the state threatening to turn off the power and have rolling blackouts," he remarked. "And now we're seeing a fast increase in demand."
According to McGlothlin, CARB invited officials from Pacific Gas & Electric, Southern California Edison, and other utility providers in public seminars, who convinced the agency that infrastructure would be in place. Businesses were also encouraged to notify the utilities a year or two in advance if they needed to construct charging stations.
"We don't anticipate it'll be that timed out and seamless of a procedure," McGlothlin said. "We've heard it takes years to repair transformers, and there are back orders and wait times on pump replacements, pump electrification, and pump connections." This additional demand will simply cause further delays in the process."
Assemblymember Blanca Rubio of West Covina was also confused by the quick phase-out of diesel vehicles given the lack of charging infrastructure.
"California is already importing roughly 30% of its electricity requirements," Rubio said in a letter to CARB, urging the agency to delay the implementation of ACF.
More liberal lawmakers, on the other hand, pressured CARB to enhance the regulation even more to accord with environmental organizations' desires.
"We encourage you to implement the most stringent Advanced Clean Fleets rule feasible," they said in a letter.