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ADMINISTRATION TOOLKIT FOR ELECTRIC VEHICLE CHARGING: The Departments of Energy and Transportation published a new EV toolkit today to help cities and other densely populated urban areas build out EV charging infrastructure, and thus incentivize consumers to switch out their gas-powered vehicles for an electric model.
The guide, “Charging Forward,” is meant to help cities plan for and take advantage of federal funds to build out charging stations for drivers.
The recommendations focus largely on the importance of building out reliable and fast public charging stations in cities—primarily in workplaces, in multi-family residences, or through partnership with “site hosts,” such as retail or fast-food locations.
Workplaces could use chargers as an incentive to attract or retain existing employees, the guidance said.
Why it’s important: While the guidance presented a handful of suggestions for encouraging EV growth, it also underscored the degree and complexity of the unique challenges cities face as they attempt to deliver on President Joe Biden’s EV targets.
Limited charging infrastructure and geographic distribution remain key hurdles to EV growth in urban areas, and lack of charging access is consistently cited as one of the primary factors preventing drivers from trading in their gas-powered vehicles.
To date, U.S. EV ownership is strongly concentrated in single-family homes—and as of 2022, 90% of EV owners in the U.S. had their own garages at home, giving them access to reliable, convenient charging.
That is not the case in most cities, where residents often rely on unassigned street parking, and often must park in a new spot every time they use their vehicle.
As the guidance notes, adding curbside charging could impede accessibility to public space for pedestrians and bikers, and pose obvious safety hazards if cords run across sidewalks or other public areas. “The length of time needed to charge EVs using Level 1 or Level 2 charging equipment may be incompatible with short-term parking priorities typical of commercial districts,” the agencies acknowledge.
Consumer fears: According to a 2023 survey from the International Parking and Mobility Institute, more than 90% of U.S. drivers said they would be anxious about finding a place other than home to charge an EV. And drivers in U.S. cities said they would not be comfortable being further than three miles away from a direct current fast charging station at any time, according to an National Renewable Energy Laboratory study.
Problems with public charging are not just confined to cities, however: To date, the U.S. has more than 3 million EVs on the road, and roughly 103,000 publicly available EV chargers, per the Biden administration’s most recent estimate–amounting to one charger for every 29 EVs. That’s well below the estimated need from the California Energy Commission, which recommends a 7:1 ratio of EVs to public and shared private chargers.
Unless city drivers have access to both reliable EV charging and parking at their places of work, the lack of access is all but certain to deter more EV adoption in urban U.S. areas.
Welcome to Daily on Energy, written by Washington Examiner Energy and Environment Writer Breanne Deppisch (@breanne_dep). Email [email protected] for tips, suggestions, calendar items, and anything else. If a friend sent this to you and you’d like to sign up, click here. If signing up doesn’t work, shoot us an email, and we’ll add you to our list.
EPA PROPOSES NEW RULES FOR LEAD PAINT: The EPA announced new proposed rules for lead paint today, in what would be the strictest-ever crackdown on a contaminant known to be particularly harmful to young children.
The agency said the new standards would apply to all buildings constructed prior to 1978, and will reduce lead exposure of between 250,000 and 500,000 children below the age of six annually.
Lead exposure even at small levels is particularly dangerous in early childhood, and can put them at risk for brain damage, stunted growth, or developmental problems. Read more from Breanne here.
NEW TEXAS LAW CURBING LOCAL LABOR ORDINANCES IN SPOTLIGHT IN HEAT WAVE: A law signed by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott in April is getting new scrutiny as a heat wave bears down on the state because it is set to remove local labor rules limiting worker hours during extreme heat.
Ordinances in Austin and Dallas require that outdoor workers be allowed to take 10-minute water breaks every four hours. When House Bill 2127 goes into effect on September 1, though, those requirements will be overridden.
At least two workers have died in the heat wave currently battering Texas, according to the Texas Tribune, and some workers say that they don’t get water breaks beyond what is mandated by the local rules.
Supporters of the new law say that OSHA rules are sufficient to protect workers and that removing the patchwork of local regulations will make it easier for businesses to operate. The law was one of several passed by Republicans this year to limit blue cities from enacting liberal rules pertaining to labor, agriculture, energy, and finance.
OSHA, though, doesn’t have specific standards for heat.
SAUDI PRODUCTION CUTS DRIVE UP SOUR CRUDE PRICES: Sour crude oil prices have risen globally this month in the wake of Saudi Arabia’s decision to implement production cuts in higher-sulfur oil.
“The kingdom’s curbs have had an outsized impact on the supply of medium-and heavy-sour barrels,” Mark Rossano, a partner at energy data provider Primary Vision Network, told Reuters.
Sour crude has traded at a premium to sweet crude in recent days in certain markets—a reversal of traditional market trends. Sweet crude, which contains less than 1% sulfur, is often priced higher than sour crude, as it is less difficult to refine and yields a greater percentage of gasoline, diesel, and aviation fuel.
More generally, oil prices were up this morning, with Brent near $80 a barrel.
HEATWAVE KNOCKS OUT TWO NUCLEAR PLANTS ALONG THE RHONE RIVER: A heatwave has elevated temperatures in the Rhone River to the extent that French regulators have had to restrict the output of two nuclear plants that use the river’s water for cooling, according to Reuters.
The impact on the grid and prices are not expected to be major, but analysts said that the situation bears watching.
We noted in a recent letter that France’s nuclear reactors have seen a 2.6% increase in activity so far compared to the same period in 2022, after plants were taken offline for longer than expected last year for planned maintenance.
VERMONT RIVERS BEGIN RECEDING AFTER MAJOR FLOODS: Vermont’s rivers began receding last night after historic flooding caused major damage in Montpelier and other towns and threatened to overrun dams and cause further disaster.
Gov. Phil Scott was scheduled to have a press briefing late this morning with Federal Emergency Management Agency administrator Deanne Criswell.
Biden spoke with those two and Sen. Bernie Sanders last night from Vilnius, Lithuania, about federal assistance. He also approved an Emergency Declaration for Vermont.
The Rundown
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