It’s not just European countries planning long-term bans on fossil fuel cars. China’s vice minister of industry and IT, Xin Guobin, has revealed that the country’s government is developing a timetable for a ban on sales of fossil fuel vehicles. The official hasn’t given a rough estimate for when a ban would kick in, but France and the UK are both aiming for 2040. It won’t be surprising if China aims for a similar time frame, and it’s already introducing a cap-and-trade program that forces companies to buy credits from rivals if their fuel economy and emissions don’t fall within certain limits.
The move is as much about the economy as the environment. China is clearly grappling with severe air pollution, and taking gas-powered cars off the road could help when combined with a reduced dependence on coal power.
