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Made in America: how Biden's climate package is fuelling the global drive to net zero
(theconversation.com)
this post was submitted on 05 Oct 2023
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That's a balance of politics. Better to be self-sufficient than to depend on other countries for oil. We are still going to be using oil for a while until we create a whole new national infrastructure for electric vehicles and phase out most gas engines.
Yeah we're gonna continue heating up the planet for a while too.
Sure, but there isn't an alternative. Currently only 4% of US car owners drive an electric car and only 20% of the energy we produce is renewable. Even if we transition as fast as humanly possible, it would take decades.
Right. But it doesn't look like a sudden cut-over; it'll look like oil use dropping something like 5% each year if we require every new vehicle to be an EV.
How soon would the supply chains and manufacturing capacity be ready for every vehicle sold in the US to be an ev?
Something like 3-5 years if it was mandated and people living ordinary lives lived with mid-sized cars instead of pickup trucks with less ability to spot a kid in front of them than a tank.
Given trends so far you'll forgive me if I think even 5 years is way too optimistic.
Other countries seem to be doin a much faster job than us. This dont have shit to do with capabilities.
They started earlier. We can't go back in time. We can only start now.
Millions of acres of new oil drilling is nothing but continuin to put off starting
It is not to increase consumption. The only difference is the oil used in the US will come from the US, not Saudi Arabia, Russia, etc.
I said continuing to heat the planet and putting off starting to address our emissions, you telling me this doesnt change anything is exactly the problem, it needs to be changed.
I agree it needs to be changed, but how?
How do the millions of people who depend on gas cars get to work tomorrow? How do the millions of people with gas stoves heat their dinner tonight? How do the millions of people with gas furnaces stay warm this winter?
We can't just stop using fossil fuels without replacements. How do you change any of this faster than we already are?
Simplest answer, by wanting to change. Americans dont want to. If they did, we'd be building public transit, bike infrastructure, more renewable energy. Existing fossil fuel applications are one thing, but we're continuing to build new ones. New gas ranges, new gas vehicles, new gas heaters.
Im especially frustrated in rural Mississippi. I really wanna do some solar work, but there's no solar businesses for hundreds of miles. Big ass trucks and SUV's everywhere
"Wanting to change" isn't an answer. It's just an empty slogan. "Wanting to" doesn't mean I can afford to buy an electric car right now.
I just bought a gas stove (came with the condo). I expect it to last for another 20 years. That means I am buying natural gas for another 20 years.
Gad heaters are the worst problem. It's not just that we have to replace all the heaters. The electrical infrastructure just doesn't exist yet. That likely means building more nuclear and wind power. Getting that to a level to generate the energy to heat all homes will take decades.
There is no way to avoid it (short of killing a couple billion people). Fossil fuels are going to be with us for decades more.