FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 10, 2021
Berkeley City Council Unanimously Adopts Resolution Calling on State to Adopt 100% Zero Emission Vehicle Standard by 2025
BERKELEY, CA – Yesterday, the City of Berkeley unanimously adopted a resolution authored by Councilmember Kate Harrison calling on the State of California to adopt a 100% Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) standard for new vehicle sales by 2025, and a statewide legislative program to achieve a 100% zero-emission public transportation and mobility system by 2030. It comes just two weeks after the nearby City of Richmond passed a similar resolution calling on a 100% ZEV standard by 2030 as part of a statewide effort to accelerate the transition to clean cars in California.
“We know that the transportation sector is the leading cause of greenhouse gas emissions in California. A speedy transition to zero emission vehicles is an important step to put into practice our commitment to climate crisis solutions,” said Councilmember Kate Harrison. “The City of Berkeley has already committed to a policy of phasing out the entirety of its municipal fossil fuel fleet by 2030 at the latest, and at Council direction, city staff are drafting an ordinance to phase out sale of fossil fuel passenger vehicles as early as 2025-2027. The state is an important partner in this work, and I’m excited that Berkeley is once again at the forefront of vital environmental action.”
The full resolution can be read here. An op-ed authored by Councilmember Harrison that appeared in Berkeleyside last week can be read here.
The Berkeley resolution is inspired by a campaign organized by ZEV2030.org calling for a simple goal: all new vehicles purchased in California will be zero emission vehicles by 2030. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) tells us we have 9 years to transform our economy, the way we live, where we live and how we move to avoid the worst of the climate crisis. Their analysis was stark and the goal clear: to avoid the most catastrophic effects of climate change, we need to slash emissions 45% below 2010 levels by 2030 and reach net zero by 2050. Cities across the state will soon be considering resolutions urging the state to adopt the 2030 (or better) standard.
“Cities are the incubators of progress and Berkeley is asking California to accelerate its transition to 100% Zero Emission Vehicles,” said Doug Linney, the Founder and Executive Director of ZEV2030.org. “The state of California must do what the cities can’t do on their own by providing the incentives and infrastructure to support a clean car future. We must act with urgency to prevent the worst impacts of climate change.”
ZEV2030.org is reaching out to additional cities around the state to pass similar resolutions similar to Berkeley’s and Richmond’s with the ultimate goal of a statewide standard adopted by Governor Gavin Newsom, the state legislature, and the California Air Resources Board (CARB). Anyone who is interested in getting involved should visit ZEV2030.org and email Molly Yoon at molly@zev2030.org to get plugged into the ZEV future.
For more information, please visit https://www.zev2030.org.
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