The California Air Resources Board (CARB) revealed this week that it plans to enforce the plan to have a third of electricity come from clean energy sources and encourage the adoption of electric vehicles so that by 2020, 1 million such vehicles will be on the roads.
"California's energy policy must be clear and focused on meeting our advanced efficiency and renewable energy goals," Air Resources Board Chairwoman Mary Nichols said according to Detnews.
The measures planned to help achieve this goal does not stop here. Spelling trouble for some carmakers, the state plans to force them, from 2018 onwards, to build a larger number of zero-emission vehicles. That number has not yet been set, but it is expected to be announced in 2011.
Additionally, the infrastructure required for the electric vehicles to work should be in place, up and running, by the same 2020. That includes setting up new rules of electricity retail.
California is thus spearheading a national push for the reduction in oil dependency which started a few years back. Earlier this year, the Obama administration announced the new fuel efficiency and emissions standards for medium and heavy-duty trucks, a category of vehicles currently not bound by strict emission rules.
The regulations will need to apply to trucks built between 2014 and 2018. Starting from 2017, a new set of rules will apply for trucks built by 2025.
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