I don't know if "Abundance" discussed the killing of the ICE industry, but it's happening. China's new car sales are now 60% EVs, and Europe is between 30% and 100% (Norway). After 2035, China and Europe will no longer allow the sale of new ICE vehicles, so legacy auto will need to fully transition, or find another market for millions of ICE cars nobody wants. After 2035, Joe MAGA will walk into his Lubbock, TX Ford dealership looking for a new truck and the only vehicles available are electric.
After the ICE industry is over, there will still be around a billion ICE cars on the world's roads, but all of those will age out over the following decade as refineries close, followed by the closure of thousands of gas stations. It's entirely possible that 20 years from today, virtually all ground transportation will be electric and powered by an ever-greening grid.
What we can do to help speed up this process is easy - never buy a gas car again. Only EVs going forward.
Roughly 25% of oil is used for transportation. Right now the rest of oil is used for consumer products like plastic just to name one. The important point is EV’s need to take over as they are in the rest of the world. We need regulations because without them people and animals die. Even with all the regulations solar and wind are still being pursued. Without regulations, people just take advantage. If we were all driving EVs you would not need expensive clean air filters for people living next to highways. The list goes on. People are too focused on short term thinking. Need to invest in the future now or things will continue to get worse.
A basic assumption in Abundance is that we can't require these addtional environmental safeguards on projects because they add to the costs. That is a basic misconception. We have enough money for ANYTHING. We just need to hav a fair taxing system where bilionaries pay their fair share. For heavens sake, require high quality air filters for housing near freeways! Saying there is not enough money is just no excuse. We have as much money as we want for anything. Anything at all!
Thanks for the thoughtful analysis of Abundance The Book, Sammy, as differentiated from Abundance the Vibe. I’d add a couple of points: “affordable” doesn’t have to mean “substandard.” Fossil fuel interests that have poisoned the climate change discussion have led local governments, which enforce those environmental regulations, to underfund the departments that inspect plans and construction. That’s led to delays and poor direction on project approvals. Those standards could be met by making efficient project approval the goal, rather than lowering standards. America is a wealthy country that can have beautiful, healthy, climate-conscious housing. To the extent we don’t, it’s due to lack of political will. Low income people deserve good housing.
I’ve watched this in local government here in Cambria: foot-dragging in local government turns projects that should be straightforward into permitting nightmares (seven years to build a skatepark, which is not yet built).
Focusing on improving the process, to build excellence, is another path to achieving these goals. Reducing the regulations, when we know better, balances the competing values by compromising low income interests. It erodes the standards to accommodate political choices rather than holding all of us to a higher standard.
Thanks for this! I definitely think more funding and improving capacity of government agencies is huge — there's actually a lot of material in "Abundance" about that.
I missed a “line out”. )that there is adequate water available in SoCal which does not relay on the Colorado River. The California aqueduct fresh water supply may be compromised by brackish water within the next 10 years as sea levels rise inexorably - and may have to be shut down.
Not having read abundance, I am curious to know where the authors stand on projects like the Delta tunnel to help to ensure going forward (as sea levels rise inexorably) that the California aqueducts fresh water supply may be compromised by brackish salt water within the next 10 years? We really need to move to production housing units which are shipped to where they are needed and plumbed in… useful R&R no gas, heat pumps, solar panels + backup should be enforced on all new housing.
I haven't read "Abundance" yet but I've come across enough commentary and hot takes (including those published by the authors) that I feel like I'm pretty familiar with the content. The one point I'll concede to the pro-abundance crowd is that we need to do a much better job of explaining and navigating tradeoffs.
Every decision or investment we make has both positive and negative consequences. And yet I've found many in the cleantech space and environmental movements will go to great lengths to act like there's no downside to their approach. The boosterism can be really off-putting to people who may otherwise be willing to get on board. A little transparency and authenticity could go a long way towards building trust across political and socioeconomic divides. Especially in an age where the default assumption is that everyone on the "other side" is full of crap.
I don't know if "Abundance" discussed the killing of the ICE industry, but it's happening. China's new car sales are now 60% EVs, and Europe is between 30% and 100% (Norway). After 2035, China and Europe will no longer allow the sale of new ICE vehicles, so legacy auto will need to fully transition, or find another market for millions of ICE cars nobody wants. After 2035, Joe MAGA will walk into his Lubbock, TX Ford dealership looking for a new truck and the only vehicles available are electric.
After the ICE industry is over, there will still be around a billion ICE cars on the world's roads, but all of those will age out over the following decade as refineries close, followed by the closure of thousands of gas stations. It's entirely possible that 20 years from today, virtually all ground transportation will be electric and powered by an ever-greening grid.
What we can do to help speed up this process is easy - never buy a gas car again. Only EVs going forward.
Roughly 25% of oil is used for transportation. Right now the rest of oil is used for consumer products like plastic just to name one. The important point is EV’s need to take over as they are in the rest of the world. We need regulations because without them people and animals die. Even with all the regulations solar and wind are still being pursued. Without regulations, people just take advantage. If we were all driving EVs you would not need expensive clean air filters for people living next to highways. The list goes on. People are too focused on short term thinking. Need to invest in the future now or things will continue to get worse.
A basic assumption in Abundance is that we can't require these addtional environmental safeguards on projects because they add to the costs. That is a basic misconception. We have enough money for ANYTHING. We just need to hav a fair taxing system where bilionaries pay their fair share. For heavens sake, require high quality air filters for housing near freeways! Saying there is not enough money is just no excuse. We have as much money as we want for anything. Anything at all!
Thanks for the thoughtful analysis of Abundance The Book, Sammy, as differentiated from Abundance the Vibe. I’d add a couple of points: “affordable” doesn’t have to mean “substandard.” Fossil fuel interests that have poisoned the climate change discussion have led local governments, which enforce those environmental regulations, to underfund the departments that inspect plans and construction. That’s led to delays and poor direction on project approvals. Those standards could be met by making efficient project approval the goal, rather than lowering standards. America is a wealthy country that can have beautiful, healthy, climate-conscious housing. To the extent we don’t, it’s due to lack of political will. Low income people deserve good housing.
I’ve watched this in local government here in Cambria: foot-dragging in local government turns projects that should be straightforward into permitting nightmares (seven years to build a skatepark, which is not yet built).
Focusing on improving the process, to build excellence, is another path to achieving these goals. Reducing the regulations, when we know better, balances the competing values by compromising low income interests. It erodes the standards to accommodate political choices rather than holding all of us to a higher standard.
Thanks for this! I definitely think more funding and improving capacity of government agencies is huge — there's actually a lot of material in "Abundance" about that.
I missed a “line out”. )that there is adequate water available in SoCal which does not relay on the Colorado River. The California aqueduct fresh water supply may be compromised by brackish water within the next 10 years as sea levels rise inexorably - and may have to be shut down.
Not having read abundance, I am curious to know where the authors stand on projects like the Delta tunnel to help to ensure going forward (as sea levels rise inexorably) that the California aqueducts fresh water supply may be compromised by brackish salt water within the next 10 years? We really need to move to production housing units which are shipped to where they are needed and plumbed in… useful R&R no gas, heat pumps, solar panels + backup should be enforced on all new housing.
I haven't read "Abundance" yet but I've come across enough commentary and hot takes (including those published by the authors) that I feel like I'm pretty familiar with the content. The one point I'll concede to the pro-abundance crowd is that we need to do a much better job of explaining and navigating tradeoffs.
Every decision or investment we make has both positive and negative consequences. And yet I've found many in the cleantech space and environmental movements will go to great lengths to act like there's no downside to their approach. The boosterism can be really off-putting to people who may otherwise be willing to get on board. A little transparency and authenticity could go a long way towards building trust across political and socioeconomic divides. Especially in an age where the default assumption is that everyone on the "other side" is full of crap.