Why China will beat U.S. in electric-car battle: urgency, regulations

2016 BYD Tang plug-in hybrid SUV, made in ChinaAs the electric-vehicle market matures and more global automakers commit to building battery-powered cars, one driving force has emerged to lead the pack. With apologies to the title of a comedy from half a century ago ... The Chinese Are Coming. That's the assertion made by old China hand Michael Dunne, of Dunne Consulting in Hong Kong, who makes...

Renewable-fuel mandate ruling leaves no one happy: the best compromise?

Non-ethanol gasoline pumpAs they say, the best compromise is usually the one that leaves all parties equally dissatisfied. When it comes to the Environmental Protection Agency's renewable-fuel mandate, it seems regulators have reached equilibrium. The latest skirmish in the long-running battle over the U.S. renewable-fuel standard appears to have been settled, at least...

Trump EPA: less enforcement of laws, more leeway for polluters

Donald TrumpIn grade school, students commonly ran through the halls when teachers or other school staff weren't looking. Signs forbidding the act of sprinting past lockers did little to deter the practice, since there was no incentive not to run unless someone present was enforcing the rule. The same can be said for industrial polluters and environmental-law...

CARB steps up shadow-EPA role with new building, vehicle testing lab

Site of new California Air Resources Board headquarters, Riverside, CA, Oct 2017For 45 years, the Environmental Protection Agency has been charged with protecting the U.S. from pollution in its air, water, and land. Under the Trump Administration, its administrator Scott Pruitt is aggressively muzzling and removing scientists, eradicating climate-science from its activities, and eliminating dozens of regulations. That makes...