Energy Secretary Steven Chu proposed for the year beginning Oct 1, a $100M reduction in the hydrogen program, while maintaining $68 million in research funds for stationery applications. He said, "We asked ourselves, is it likely in the next 10 or 15, or even 20 years that we will convert to a hydrogen-car economy? The answer, we felt, was no."
Other than those directly involved in the industry, and some automakers continuing on momentum, most analysts see other technologies advancing far more rapidly and facing fewer barriers in technology, infrastructure and conversion losses. For insight into the reasons the Energy Department is favoring plug-in vehicles over fuel cells, see the links to the US DOE's Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Energy Steven Chalk's congressional testimony and Detroit News interview here.
Cash For Clunkers Bill Advances
The Waxman-Markey Bill includes $3.5-$4.5 billion in incentives for vehicle swaps for a million vehicles. It has also been introduced as a stand-alone bill in the House and Senate. The bill has been slightly improved, giving higher amounts for swaps with a 10MPG increase.
Senators Dianne Feinstein and Susan Collins, recognizing the measure's limitations, have introduced a stronger, bi-partisan version, requiring much higher efficiency vehicles in the swap. But none of them have begun to think about the points CalCars has been making involving the "embedded energy" involved in building a car. That means, in simplified terms, unless you replace a car with one getting twice the MPG, you're a net loser in terms of energy and CO2 savings.
Weighing in on this issue are Bill Chameides, dean of Duke University's Nicholas School of the Environment, and Richard Larrick, an associate professor at Duke's Fuqua School of Business, saying, "Just because you go out and buy a new car and it has a higher fuel economy, it doesn't mean you're actually saving C02." They also support switching how we view fuel efficiency, to talk about "gallons per hundred miles" to enable us to appreciate the impact of energy savings from the least efficient vehicles.
Click here for more on the latest federal actions accelerating the transition to plug-in cars.
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