ADMINISTRATION ROLLED OUT ITS

MOST AGGRESSIVE EFFORT YET TO

COMBAT CLIMATE CHANGE, WITH

TOUGHER EMISSIONS LIMITS FOR

CARS AND TRUCKS.

BUT A NUMBER OF CHALLENGES

REMAIN, INCLUDING THE COST OF

ELECTRIC CARS, THE BATTERIES,

AND HOW TO CHARGE THEM ON THE

ROAD.

WILLIAM BRANGHAM HAS OUR REPORT

ON THE ADMINISTRATION'S LATEST

MOVE.

WILLIAM: CLEANER CARS, CLEANER

AIR, AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE.

THAT'S THE STATED GOAL OF THE

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

AGENCY'S NEW PROPOSED EMISSIONS

STANDARDS FOR TAILPIPES.

IF ENACTED, THESE STANDARDS

COULD MEAN THAT, IN LESS THAN

TEN YEARS, AS MANY AS 2 OUT OF

EVERY 3 NEW VEHICLES SOLD IN

AMERICA WOULD BE ALL-ELECTRIC.

IT'S THE NATION'S MOST AMBITIOUS

EFFORT YET TO CUT THE GREENHOUSE

GAS EMISSIONS THAT ARE DRIVING

CLIMATE CHANGE.

THE ADMINISTRATION ARGUES THAT

THIS SHIFT TO ZERO EMISSION

VEHICLES WOULD HELP THE U.S.

MEET ITS PLEDGE TO CUT OVERALL

EMISSIONS IN HALF BY 2030.

EPA ADMINISTRATOR MICHAEL REGAN

LAID OUT THE PLAN THIS MORNING.

>> THIS IS HISTORIC NEWS FOR OUR

CHILDREN, IT'S HISTORIC NEWS FOR

OUR CLIMATE, IT'S HISTORIC NEWS

FOR OUR FUTURE.

WILLIAM: THE EPA LAID OUT TWO

SETS OF PROPOSED RULES TODAY:

ONE GOVERNING CARS AND LIGHT

TRUCKS, THE SECOND FOR HEAVIER

VEHICLES LIKE BUSES AND

TRAILER-TRUCKS.

IF ENACTED, THE EPA SAYS

EMISSIONS FROM THOSE SMALL AND

MEDIUM VEHICLES WOULD DROP BY 44

TO 56%.

>> AS A FATHER OF A

NINE-YEAR-OLD, I CAN ASSURE YOU

THAT THERE IS NO GREATER

PRIORITY FOR ME THAN PROTECTING

THE HEALTH AND WELL-BEING OF OUR

CHILDREN, AND ENSURING THAT THEY

HAVE A SAFE, HEALTHY AND

RELIABLE FUTURE.

WILLIAM: TRANSPORTATION IS THE

LARGEST SOURCE OF AMERICA'S

GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS,

ACCOUNTING FOR AROUND 27% OF

THE U.S.'S CARBON POLLUTION.

SUPPORTERS SAY THIS MOVE BY THE

EPA IS A WELCOME ADDITION IN THE

FIGHT TO CURB THE WORST IMPACTS

OF CLIMATE CHANGE.

>> IT'S A DREAM COME TRUE FOR

THOSE OF US WHO KNOW WE NEED TO

DECARBONIZE OUR OUR SOCIETY AND

CERTAINLY OUR CARS AND TRUCKS.

WILLIAM: FRED KRUPP IS PRESIDENT

OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENSE

FUND.

>> EPA HAS THE AUTHORITY TO

REDUCE THE AMOUNT OF TAILPIPE

POLLUTION.

AND WHEN YOU REDUCE IT ENOUGH,

THE WAY TO MEET THAT IS THROUGH

ZERO EMITTING VEHICLES LIKE

ELECTRIC CARS.

AND THAT'S THE MECHANISM.

IF A COMPANY CAN DO IT WITH A

HYDROGEN FUEL CELL OR AN

ELECTRIC VEHICLE, THEY'RE

ALLOWED TO DO THAT.

BUT IN REALITY, THE ELECTRIC

VEHICLE IS THE ANSWER THAT NOT

ONLY TESLA, BUT GM, FORD,

STELLANTIS HAVE ALL CHOSEN AS

THE BEST WAY TO CLEAN UP THAT

TAILPIPE.

WILLIAM: THIS SHIFT WOULD

REQUIRE AUTOMAKERS TO

DRAMATICALLY RAMP UP PRODUCTION

OF ELECTRIC VEHICLES.

LAST YEAR, EVS WERE ROUGHLY 5.8%

OF NEW CARS SOLD IN THE U.S.

RIGHT NOW, THEY ARE ABOUT 7%.

BUT EPA ADMINISTRATOR REGAN SAID

THE INDUSTRY IS READY FOR THIS

SURGE.

>> OVER THE LAST TWO YEARS OVER

, $120 BILLION OF PRIVATE SECTOR

INVESTMENT IN ELECTRIC VEHICLES

AND BATTERIES.

I BELIEVE IT BECAUSE WHEN I LOOK

AT THE PROJECTIONS THAT MANY IN

THE AUTOMOBILE INDUSTRY HAVE

MADE, THIS IS THE FUTURE.

THE CONSUMER DEMAND IS THERE,

THE MARKETS ARE ENABLING IT, THE

TECHNOLOGIES ARE ENABLING IT.

WILLIAM: THE EFFORT TO

TRANSITION TO ELECTRIC CARS IS

ALREADY UNDERWAY IN THIS

COUNTRY.

AND ALMOST ALL AUTOMAKERS HAVE

ROLLED OUT NEW ELECTRIC MODELS,

WITH A FEW EVEN PLEDGING TO GO

FULLY CARBON NEUTRAL SOON.

BUT STILL, THERE ARE SOME REAL

CHALLENGES AHEAD ON THE ROAD TO

AN ALL-ELECTRIC FUTURE.

ONE IS ABOUT THE BATTERIES FOR

THESE CARS.

THE MINERALS CURRENTLY NEEDED

FOR THEM, LITHIUM, NICKEL,

COBALT AND OTHERS, ARE PRIMARILY

PRODUCED IN CHINA, AND SOME ARE

MINED IN DANGEROUS, INHUMANE

CONDITIONS IN PARTS OF AFRICA.

BUT THERE ARE OTHER ISSUES.

JOHN BOZZELLA IS THE PRESIDENT

OF THE ALLIANCE FOR AUTOMOTIVE

INNOVATION, WHICH REPRESENTS

CARMAKERS.

>> WHEN YOU TALK TO CONSUMERS,

WHAT YOU OFTEN HEAR IS HOW FAR

WILL THIS GO ON A CHARGE AND

WHERE CAN I CHARGE IT?

AND SO THAT RAISES TWO IMMEDIATE

QUESTIONS.

DO WE HAVE SUFFICIENT CHARGING

INFRASTRUCTURE?

ARE THERE HIGH SPEED CHARGERS

AVAILABLE ON INTERSTATES BETWEEN

METROPOLITAN AREAS SO THAT IT

CAN TAKE A LONGER TRIP AS

OPPOSED TO JUST MOVING THREE OR

FOUR MILES AROUND MY MY

HOMETOWN?

WILLIAM: THERE ARE ROUGHLY

53,000 CHARGING STATIONS

CURRENTLY IN THE U.S., COMPARED

TO TRIPLE THAT NUMBER OF GAS

STATIONS.

PRESIDENT BIDEN HAS PLEDGED

CONSTRUCTION OF NEW CHARGING

500,000 STATIONS NATIONWIDE BY

2030, AND SET ASIDE 7.5 BILLION

IN THE 2021 INFRASTRUCTURE LAW

TO PAY FOR IT.

>> CHARGING STATIONS ARE

BECOMING INCREASINGLY

UBIQUITOUS.

IN THE LAST FEW DAYS, 7-ELEVEN

ANNOUNCED THAT THEY WILL HAVE

CHARGING STATIONS AT ALL THEIR

LOCATIONS.

YOU'LL BE ABLE TO DRINK A

SLURPEE WHILE YOU'RE CHARGING

YOUR CAR.

AND WALMART, WHICH ALREADY HAS

1300 CHARGING STATIONS, HAS

ANNOUNCED THEY'RE GOING TO BUILD

THOUSANDS MORE AT EVERY SINGLE

WALMART AND SAM'S CLUB.

WILLIAM: ANOTHER IMPEDIMENT IS

COST. THE CURRENT AVERAGE EV

COSTS ABOUT $65,000, ROUGHLY

$17,000 MORE THAN THE AVERAGE

GAS POWERED CAR.

EVEN WITH THE FEDERAL TAX CREDIT

OF $7,500, WHICH NOT ALL EV'S

QUALIFY FOR, PLUS THE

LONGER-TERM SAVINGS OF NEVER

HAVING TO BUY GAS, THAT INITIAL

STICKER SHOCK HAS KEPT SOME

BUYERS AWAY.

>> RIGHT NOW THE AVERAGE

TRANSACTION PRICE OF AN ELECTRIC

VEHICLES IS IS SUBSTANTIALLY

HIGHER THAN THE AVERAGE

TRANSACTION PRICE OF AN INTERNAL

COMBUSTION ENGINE VEHICLE.

WILL THAT CHANGE OVER TIME?

OF COURSE IT WILL.

WILLIAM: BECAUSE THESE EPA RULES

ARE AN EXPANSION OF EXISTING

STATUTES, IT'S LIKELY THEY'LL BE

CHALLENGED IN THE COURTS.

FOR "THE PBS NEWSHOUR," I'M

WILLIAM BRANGHAM.

♪