Zero Emission Vehicle testimony to be presented to CARB on June 1,2000

["T.J. Graham" <timberj@mcn.org>]

Hi everyone on the list, this is Roy at
MendoMotive Electric Vehicles.

Steve Heckeroth asked that this be posted to this list.
It is the text of testimony to be delivered tomorrow before the
California Air Resources Board, and the cover letter to
Governor Davis with his copy.


Tuesday, May 30,2000

Stephen Heckeroth
P.O. Box 151
Albion, CA 95410
Phone/FAX 707 937 0338
e:mail: steve@renewables.com

Governor Gray Davis
State Capital Building
Sacramento, CA 95814

Dear Governor Davis,

The 1990 ZEV Mandate fueled research and development of clean transpotation
technologies
worldwide. In 1996, your predecessor was instrumental in the elimination of
most of what made
the Mandate an effective tool for clean transportation technologies. Please
take the time to read
and consider this testimony which will be presented on June 1 to the ARB
staff. I urge you to
uphold and strengthen the Mandate.


Thank you for your consideration,
Stephen Heckeroth



Testimony for CARB Staff - June 1,2000

I am presenting this testimony for Steve Heckeroth who has converted and
manufactured
EVs since 1992 and has designed solar homes and installed renewable energy
systems
since 1973. He has testified at previous Zero Emission Mandate hearings and
workshops
on the importance of maintaining the Mandate.

We are in the midst of the most devastating worldwide extinction of plant
and animal
species in 65 million years. The last mass extinction occurred when an
asteroid hit the
planet. The current mass extinction has many man made causes, Primary among
these is
the environmental destruction caused by our transportation system.

Petroleum use is a double-edged sword of depletion and pollution. Although
there is no
threat of running out of oil, the point at which supply cannot keep up with
demand is the
point we should worry about. In the early `70s this point was reached in the
domestic US
supply causing a domestic fuel crisis. At that point, the US could have made
a decision to
live within its means and develop alternative fuels and forms of
transportation. Instead,
the US increased its reliance on foreign oil.. As the chart copied from a
current German
magazine shows, peak production worldwide is only a few years off. The only
way to
avert worldwide crisis is to immediately switch to alternative fuels and
forms of
transportation.

Less pollution is the primary goal of the Zero Emission Mandate. And there
have been
great strides in making petroleum powered cars less polluting. But as
pointed out in the
Staff Report the "upstream" emissions related to the transportation
infrastructure and fuel
production are major component of overall pollution. These upstream
environmental
effects will increase dramatically as easily extracted petroleum resources
are depleted,
in effect canceling all the improvements made in tailpipe emissions
controls.

The concentration of pollutants is not the only measure of air quality. The
availability of
oxygen in the air has more do with determining air quality than any other
factor. We
can only survive for 3 minutes without oxygen. When one 7.5 lb. gallon of
gasoline is
burned, it produces 20 lbs. of carbon dioxide. this means that 2/3 of the
fuel burned is
oxygen. Oxygen is a primal resource that built up in the atmosphere as the
result of billions
of years of photosynthesis. When a plant decomposes or burns, as much oxygen
is used
as the plant created during it's lifetime. This time lag between
photosynthesis and
decomposition or burning is what allows free oxygen to exist in our
atmosphere. In other
words, the only reason free oxygen exists is because hydrocarbons are buried
deep in the
ground. If we were successful in exploiting ever bit of fossil fuel we would
also
eliminate free oxygen from our atmosphere. The quality of emission control
devices is
determined by how close to complete combustion is attained. This means that
successful
emissions control consumes the most oxygen and the resulting exhaust may not
poison
but lacks the essential oxygen to maintain life. If we are to avert our own
extinction we
must both maintain oxygen levels in the atmosphere and eliminate poisonous
exhaust.
This is an impossible task as long as we burn fossil fuels.

We are not in danger of running out of oxygen but we have no idea what even
a small
change in oxygen levels will do to life on this planet. We have already
experienced a
70% increase in respiratory disease in the last 20 years. We are in the
midst of the largest
mass extinction in 65 million years. And we are experiencing unprecedented
global
climate change.

The earth is probably the only planet in the galaxy and maybe the only
planet in the
universe with the exact conditions that allow our form of life to exist.
Conventional
wisdom suggests that the sun will burn for another 5.5 billion years. The
lives of trillions
of future earth dwellers hang in the balance while almost 1 billion cars
idle in traffic.

Last year I installed more than 50 kW of PV roofing and charge my own EVs
from solar
energy. As much solar energy strikes the earth everyday as the energy from
all the oil
used for transportation in the last 100 years. Instead of making deals with
the industry it
is supposed to regulate, the ARB should work with the California Energy
Commission to
create the incentives necessary to build a solar charged transportation
system.

The '98 2% Zero Emission Mandate was eliminated. The 2001 5% Mandate was
eliminated. The2003 10% Mandate was cut to 4% and then reduced to 2.3% by
giving
low emission vehicles patial credit. It should also be noted that the
Mandate only applies
to vehicles weighing less than 3,750 lbs. In the last 5 years the auto
industry has
aggressively marketed vehicles, such as SUVs and pickups that weigh more
than 3,750
lbs. In 1999 more than half the vehicles sold in California were SUVs and
passenger
trucks that don't count toward the Mandate. So in effect the Mandate has
been reduced to
just over 1%. Because the Mandate only applies to manufacturers that sell
over 35,000
cars in California the result is far less then 1%.

The ARB is faced with several dilemmas as a result of their MOA with the
auto industry:

First- How does the ARB deal with mergers and sales volume increases and
decreases in
California? I believe the best way to resolve this issue is subject all
manufacturers who
wish to sell cars in California to the same Mandate regardless of their
size.

Second- Should NEVs be counted to satisfy the Mandate?
I believe they should be counted if they can replace trips made in full-size
cars.

Third- Should the ARB continue to allow vehicles that weigh more than 3,750
lbs. to be
excluded from the Mandate?
Weight is the most important factor in the efficiency of a vehicle. Why
shouldn't the
ARB encourage vehicles of every size to move toward Zero Emission, The 3,750
lbs.
limit is an arbitrary weight that creates a loophole for the industry to
aggressively market
heavy vehicles to avoid compliance with the Mandate. There should be no
weight limit.
Unless a vehicle manufacturer exclusively builds large commercial trucks,
they should
comply with ZEV mandated percentages.

As long as the ARB allows the industry to run the show change will be too
slow to insure
a healthy environment for future generations. The ARB must take the lead for
the rest of
 the nation and the world and stand behind the vision embodied in the 1990
Mandate.
The ARB's job is to protect the health and safety of the public not to
insure profits for
the industry.