Mary Nichols

The conclusion of California’s Legislative session saw the adoption of ambitious new climate and energy legislation—including laws to set interim targets for 100% clean energy, regulate projects to remove carbon from the atmosphere and smokestacks, and approve buffer zones for new oil wells near communities.  The aforementioned coincides with much of the State experiencing the dire effects of climate change and the health and resilience challenges wrought by extreme heat and wildfires.

In July, 15 states and the District of Columbia announced a joint memorandum of understanding (MOU), committing to work collaboratively to advance and accelerate the market for electric medium- and heavy-duty vehicles to achieve the deep economy-wide emission reductions needed to avoid the worst consequences of climate change.

With Shelter-in-Place the law statewide in response to the Coronavirus and California’s economy all but shuttered, major highways have been emptied and California’s air quality has never been better. VXNews, to better appreciate the significance of the aforementioned and to honor Earth Day 50, spoke with Mary Nichols, Chair of the California Air Resources Board (CARB), on the effects & long-time implications of the transition to remote work on air quality.

CARB's Mary Nichols addresses the state’s ongoing regulatory battles with the federal government over the California's efforts on air quality and climate action.

CARB Chair joins VX News in light of the Trump Administration's attack on California's waiver to set GHG and clean car standards.

VX2018 brought together electric vehicle leaders to discuss the future of zero emission mobility, right after California Governor Brown announced a new target to get to five million electric vehicles by 2030.

CARB Chair Mary Nichols explains the potential impact of the Volkswagen settlement for electric transportation, as well as how the national leadership vacuum on climate change is affecting California's international partnerships.

The California Air Resources Board’s most recent quarterly cap-and-trade auction was the first to result in only a fraction of available permits sold. Detractors used the weak auction results to highlight the program’s uncertain future, whereas advocates touted the state’s success in cutting carbon emissions quicker than expected. To CARB Chair Mary Nichols, who has overseen the leadership of the program since its inception, the auction showed that industries were keeping a lid on carbon emissions rather than buying permits to emit more. Nichols speaks to ongoing efforts to extend California’s carbon cap-and-trade system, and to expand the model to other states. Nichols also addresses the historic enforcement action and settlement with Volkswagen, which CARB led on negotiating.

Over the last decade, significant efforts by leaders in Sacramento, automobile manufacturers, and hydrogen-fueling station developers have laid the foundation for a statewide infrastructure to support hydrogen fuel cell vehicles. California now leads the nation in developing fueling stations, with 17 retail stations open now and more than 30 more in development. In April, leaders from the public and private sector showed off the readiness of this advanced technology by driving from Santa Monica to Sacramento in hydrogen fuel cell vehicles. VX News presents an excerpt of remarks from the event, featuring Tyson Eckerle (ZEV Infrastructure Deputy Director for the Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development), Mary Nichols (CARB Chair); Janea Scott (CEC Commissioner); Tony Vasquez (Mayor of Santa Monica); Dr. Clark Parker (South Coast AQMD Board Member); and Shane Stephens (True Zero co-founder).