Where: Boalt Hall, School of Law, Goldberg Room
When: 12:30-2 p.m.
Who: Dan Sperling, memeber of California Air Resources Board
Why: Dr. Sperling this summer advised the California Air Resources Board to reduce by a segnificant number the fuel-cell vehicles that had been promised by the auto-industry back in 2003 in exchange for not having to have produced electric cars.
Read more details below the fold.
Dan Sperling was the most instrumental person in killing the requirements that automakers make thousands of fuel-cell vehicles by 2012 in the last iteration of the Zero Emissions Vehicle mandate set forth by the California Air Resources Board (CARB). If you have watched the movie "Who Killed the Electric Car?" you remember that the oil and auto industry lobbied heavily for CARB, back in 2003, to remove the requirements for producing vehicles that didn't pollute in exchange for fuel-cell vehicles that they promised they would produce in the tens of thousands by 2012 to 2014. Allen Lloyd, who was then deeply involved in fuel-cell technology and was the chairperson of CARB, convinced the other board members at that time to listen to the auto-industry and opt to allow them to make many fuel-cell vehicles in the future rather than having them make zero emission vehicles (ZEVs) at that time, which meant electric cars. The board voted to give the automakers a pass on electric vehicles in exchanged for a promise that there would be many more fuel-cell vehicles on the road in the future. The auto-industry responded to the weakening of the mandate by collecting nearly all the electric cars they had produced and crushed them. Ever since that fateful day back in 2003 the auto-industry has been lobbing heavily that it can’t make the fuel-cell vehicles in the quantities they promised. Electric vehicles were on the road in the thousands in 2003 and by now would have numbered in the tens of thousands if the mandate had been held to. This summer rather than Allen Lloyd taking up the charge for fuel-cell technology it was Daniel Sperling who stepped up for the auto-industry and convinced CARB to reduce the number ZEVs required in the law for 2012 to 2014 to a mear demonstration fleet. In effect killing the ZEV mandate once again.
Fall Speaker Series - Dan Sperling: Climate Policy for Transportation: Politics and Policy
Lecture | September 15 | 12:30-2 p.m. | Boalt Hall, School of Law, Goldberg Room
Speaker/Performer: Dan Sperling
Sponsor: Boalt Environmental Group
Daniel Sperling is Professor of Civil Engineering and Environmental Science and Policy, and founding Director of the Institute of Transportation Studies (ITS-Davis) at the University of California, Davis. He is also Acting Director of the UC Davis Energy Efficiency Center (EEC). In February 2007, Governor Schwarzenegger appointed Dr. Sperling to the "automotive" seat on the California Air Resources Board.
Dr. Sperling is recognized as a leading international expert on transportation technology assessment, energy and environmental aspects of transportation, and transportation policy. He has testified numerous times to the US Congress, California Legislature, and various government agencies, and provided keynote presentations and invited talks in recent years at international conferences in Asia, Europe, and North America. In the past 25 years, he has authored or co-authored over 200 technical papers and eight books. He serves on many advisory committees and advises senior executives of many automotive and energy companies, environmental groups, and national governments.
Target audience: Students - Graduate
Open to audiences: All Audiences, Students - Prospective, Students - Undergraduate
Event Contact: 510-643-8167