Since the US doesn’t have a real federal gov., mayors step in for int’l climate talks
Groups of US city mayors and representatives from state governments announced a delegation of officials who will attend climate talks for the US today, as the lack of a real US federal government with any interest in solving problems for Americans has led to lower, subnational representatives having to step up and do their job for them.
The delegation was announced today by multiple subnational climate coalitions: America Is All In, the U.S. Climate Alliance, C40 Cities and Climate Mayors.
These groups all have different focuses and membership, but share the common thread that all of them consist of subnational US representatives who want to solve the problem of climate change. They include representatives from governments of all sizes – as small as, say, McCall, Idaho (population 3,686); to as large as California, the 4th largest economy in the world.
The groups announced a delegation that will attend several global climate events in the coming weeks, including the the UNFCCC June Climate Meetings in Bonn (June 16-26), London Climate Action Week (June 21-29), and a Paris Agreement 10-year anniversary event on June 23. Delegation members include:
- Laura Tierney, Vice President of International Programs, Business Council for Sustainable Energy
- Mayor Kate Gallego, Climate Mayors Chair, C40 Steering Committee and Phoenix Mayor
- Secretary Yana Garcia, California Environmental Protection Agency
- Secretary Serena McIlwain, Maryland Department of the Environment
- Elizabeth Lien, Program Director for America Is All In
- Kate Wright, Executive Director, Climate Mayors
- Nathan Hultman, Director of the Center for Global Sustainability
The delegation will work to showcase that, despite the backpedaling we see regarding US federal climate action, states and cities are ready to pick up the slack until US leadership returns.
Today’s move became necessary only due to the lack of a real US federal government that wants to work on solving the largest problem in human history.
Climate change is the biggest problem that humanity has ever caused for itself, and will take a concerted effort of people all over the globe to solve. Over the last century (and particularly over the last 30 years, where humanity emitted more than half of all-time global emissions), humans have collectively put significant effort into ignoring the environmental destruction we are causing, and so will need to reverse that damage with a global effort.
Currently, the atmosphere is at 430ppm CO2, while the safe historical level is around 350ppm. In order to get us back to a reasonable level, humanity needs to not only stop polluting, but also remove about a trillion tons of CO2 from the atmosphere. The more we pollute now, the more we’ll have to remove later, at much greater cost – so nothing is “too fast” as far as pollution reductions are concerned. Implementing drastic pollution reductions today will only save effort and misery for humanity in the long term.
This is a tall order, so cooperation from the world’s largest governments is necessary. To this end, the UN and other intergovernmental organizations host regular climate talks for countries to negotiate how we’re going to fix this problem in an equitable and efficient manner.
Nevermind that these talks often end up ineffective – with groups either making proclamations that countries aren’t making enough progress following, or those agreements getting watered down by fossil lobbying.
However, the country most responsible for climate change, the US, has currently abdicated its responsibility to clean up after itself.
Like the last time a former reality TV host squatted in the White House (after receiving 3 million fewer votes than his opponent), it’s expected that the US federal government won’t be engaging in much climate diplomacy during the next 4 years, which are crucial to solving this immediate problem. In fact, that stint is what led to the formation of some of today’s groups in the first place.
That same former reality TV host (now also a convicted felon who further attempted an insurrection to overthrow a legitimate election, thus disqualifying him from holding office per the US Constitution) unfortunately stumbled into the White House again, after receiving more votes than his opponent for the first time, despite that US law barring him from running in the first place.
It’s expected that his current coalition of reality TV characters and other incompetents cosplaying as a federal government will once again purposefully fail to engage in effective diplomacy to solve the biggest problem humanity has ever faced. In fact, they’re actually trying to make the problem worse by polluting your air, raising your costs, sending your money to elites, and ensuring US manufacturing will lose competitiveness and surrender to China.
So, in their absence, states and mayors are having to step up.
Besides, in many parts of the world, climate action has been driven by cities. For example, several European cities have instituted low-emissions zones or congestion charges to reduce car dependency and pollution in the places most populated by people. These moves have worked to reduce pollution, and the US has seen success with a similar idea in NYC too.
However, despite that the majority of the world’s population now lives in cities, the problem of climate change is global and doesn’t just affect people where population density is the highest, but everywhere around the globe. For this reason, we need cooperation at the highest level – and a competent delegation from the federal government of the world’s largest historical emitter would be a nice thing to have, instead of relying on the mayor of the aforementioned McCall, Idaho to shoulder the burden (thank you, Mr. Giles, for your service).
Another thing the US government might destroy is the rooftop solar credit. That means you could have only until the end of this year to install rooftop solar on your home, before republicans raise the cost of doing so by an average of ~$10,000. So if you want to go solar, get started now, because these things take time and the system needs to be active before you file for the credit.
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HOLMS Attachments has made it easier for heavy equipment fleets to electrify with a new sweeper attachment that’s equipped with its own power source, freeing it from the need for a mechanical or battery (e) PTO.
Commercial trucks do more than just move people and things from place to place – special implements like street sweepers, cherry pickers, and tow beds mean they do real work, as well. But the attachments, implements, and even utility bodies being upfitted onto these trucks were largely developed for diesel platforms. They typically get juice from hydraulics or other power take-off (PTO) systems that typically take the form of a splined drive shaft powered directly by the ICE.
BEVs work differently, and have to draw on their battery power to operate these tools. That takes away which takes away from both the range and performance of the EVs in question. Adding to the complexity, some of these attachments are still mechanically driven, requiring an electrically-driven spline shaft, or “ePTO” to operate.
The new eSL Electric Sweeper attachment from HOLMS aims to solve for all that new complexity that’s emerging as electric equipment becomes more commonplace.
“Electric equipment in general has taken a lot of different directions,” said Dan Snedecor, President and General Manager of HOLMS Attachments. “We realized, let’s not use the power from the machine, because keeping up with that will be even harder than keeping up with the different style hooks and hydraulic systems.”
Developed for the electric equipment needs of the near future, HOLMS’ eSL optimizes the uptime of your electric vehicle or equipment asset so you can complete more tasks between charging sessions.
“Our theory is this will be kind of like an electric drill that we all have at home, where you leave it plugged in until you need it. You go out, you use it, and then you put it back on the charger when you’re done,” Snedecor told Equipment Journal. “The real benefit of that will be the end users don’t need machines that have extra hydraulic functions necessarily.”
The prototype sweeper is controlled from the cab of the wheel loader via Bluetooth and is equipped with a 10 kWh, 48V li-ion battery pack that’s good for three-and-a-half hours of runtime on a single charge. HOLMS says the sweeper’s battery can be recharged in about 90 minutes.
Electrek’s Take
Bobcat was arguably the first big equipment company to start rethinking the way implements would work on electric machinery that didn’t have a reciprocating engine at its core, but the replacement of hydraulics and PTOs with servos and gears seems to be well under way.
We’re here for it.
SOURCE | IMAGES: Equipment Journal, HOLMS.
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We’ve been big fans of highly capable LSVs for a while here on Electrek, and the newest Cushman Hauler XL ELiTE electric utility vehicle keeps that trend alive with an extra-long, 68.5″ aluminum bed for even more cargo-hauling capability.
The Cushman Hauler XL ELiTE’s truck-like layout, functional dash, and familiar, car-like controls make it easier to operate than an ATV with a trailer, while its 1,200 lb. bed load capacity and 1,600-pound payload capacity (plus 1,500 lb. towing capacity) beat the pants off the classic, 00’s-era Ford Ranger pickup’s 1,140 lb. payload capacity.
The Cushman’s flatbed can be upgraded to add steel drop sides, an aluminum box bed (shown, above) and other custom upfit solutions that enable fleet operators to perfectly tailor the Hauler’s capabilities to their specific needs.
You already know how to drive it
The Hauler XL features a “twin pack” of two 56.7V, 4.2 kWh ELiTE lithium-ion batteries (8.4 kWh total) developed by Samsung SDI. The batteries are expected to be good for between four to eight hours of operation, depending on load, and are backed by a 5-year battery warranty.
What’s more, the newest Cushman features a technology that’s commonplace in cars and trucks, but still incredibly rare in the world of UTVs: regenerative braking.
“The Hauler XL … is an industry leader in bed size, vehicle rating and bed load capacity,” says Adam Harris, vice president and general manager of Cushman and E-Z-GO. “With our five-year battery warranty and patented E-brake technology, it’s built for the most difficult jobs.”
Cushman lists the Hauler XL’s manufacturer suggested retail price (MSRP) at $19,989, but dealers are advertising new ones for as low as $17,398. For that money you get a day’s worth of silent, emissions-free operation and the previously-mentioned 1,200 lb. bed capacity.
Electrek’s Take
Every smart fleet manager eventually asks themselves whether they need a pickup, or a payload. When they ask that question, they’re usually trying to decide between something like a Ford Maverick and an F-150, but with vehicles like the Hauler XL ELiTE, Club Car Urban UTV, or the latest weird thing Micah Toll dredged up on Alibaba, you get the bed and the payload capacity – and you get them both for $20-30,000 less than a conventional pickup.
SOURCE | IMAGES: Cushman, via Equipment World.
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Environment
Kia EV2 Coupe spotted for the first time: The entry-level electric SUV gains a new style
It kind of looks like the Genesis GV60. Kia’s smallest and most affordable electric SUV is set to receive a sleek new coupe variant. The Kia EV2 Coupe was spotted for the first time, giving us a clear look at how it compares to the SUV version.
Meet the Kia EV2 Coupe, a new entry-level EV
The Concept EV2 was first showcased during Kia’s EV Day in April, previewing its upcoming entry-level EV. Kia has yet to say exactly how big it will be, but it’s expected to be slightly smaller than the EV3 at 4,300 mm (169.3″) in length.
Despite its small size, Kia claims it will feel much more spaceous, thanks to a unique interior design. With a higher-sitting ride than you would expect, the EV2 even looks bigger on the road. It sort of resembles a mini EV9 with wide wheel arches and Kia’s new Tiger Face grille design.
With its official launch coming up, EV2 prototypes have been spotted driving out in public a few times now. Camouflaged, of coarse.
We even got a sneak peek of the interior during an exclusive event at Milan Design Week in April, but the most recent sighting looks a little different.
The new Kia EV2 Coupe variant was spotted on a car carrier in Korea with a coupe-like design. A video from HealerTV provides a side by side comparison of it compared to the original SUV model.
As the reporter notes, the vehicle looks almost identical from the front and back, until it comes to the C-Pillar. From what we can see, the new coupe design has a bit of a Genesis GV60-like feel to it. The bumper and trunk area have been slightly modified to fit the coupe styling.
The new Coupe variant gains pixelated turn signals on the side mirros, giving it a more futuristic, electric look.
Unlike most of Kia’s new electric vehicles, including the regular EV2, the Coupe variant features horizontal taillights, as opposed to the new vertical design. However, that could change when it arrives in production form.
The interior will feature Kia’s new ccNC (connected car Navigation Cockpit), a panoramic curved infotainment system with dual 12.3″ driver cluster and touchscreen navigation screens.
Kia is set to launch the EV2 in Europe and “other global regions” next year. Given the love for bigger trucks and SUVs in the US, it’s not expected to make the trip overseas.
Although the company has yet to officially reveal prices, Kia’s CEO, Ho-Sung Song, told Autocar in 2023 that the company wants to launch the EV2 at around £25,000 ($32,000) in the UK. It will sit below the EV3 in Kia’;s lineup, which is priced from £32,995 ($44,800) in the UK and €35,990 ($41,600) in Europe.
What do you think of the Kia EV2 Coupe? Do you like the design better than the original modle? If it looks like the Genesis GV60, sign me up. Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
Check back soon for more info on the upcoming Kia EV2 and new Coupe variant. We’ll keep you updated with the latest.
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