In automotive Earth Day news are Karma, BMW, Straus Family Dairy, Electrify America, Toyota, Hyundai and Turo.
Good Karma for Karma
Karma Automotive announced the company has joined The Climate Pledge, committing to become net carbon neutral by 2040. This commitment encompasses its production facility, supply chain partners and product lineup which includes vehicles powered by both hybrid and pure electric powertrains and propulsion systems.
Free Fast EV Charging
On Earth Day, Thursday April 22, electric vehicle owners will get free charging sessions at all Electrify America ultra-fast charging stations.
Straus Family Creamery Cow Manure Gases Up BMW EVs for MOO-vement
-Straus Family Creamery, a leader in climate-positive organic dairy farming innovation, announces the evolution in a first-of-its-kind collaboration with BMW Group. Through California Air Resources Board’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) Program, BMW can “power” their customers’ electric vehicles with ultra-low carbon intensity electric fuel produced from biodigester technology on the Straus Organic Dairy Farm. The BMW collaboration strengthens Albert Straus’ vision to create a replicable carbon-neutral farming model on his farm, and it provides an opportunity for California dairy farmers to generate new income sources.
he Straus Organic Dairy Farm and BMW Group’s collaboration created a new farm-to-electric pathway in 2019 that ensured the Straus farm could recently invest in and test an advanced biodigester technology. With costs between $1 and $2 million, small-scale methane digesters have not been affordable for smaller dairies. This advanced technology is an upgraded version of the methane biodigester that has been operating on the Straus farm since 2004.
“Dairy farms have an essential role in being a solution to climate change. I really appreciate BMW Group’s willingness and collaboration in helping us create a viable farming system,” said Albert Straus, founder and CEO, Straus Family Creamery.
Low Carbon Fuel Standard Program Successes
Straus Organic Dairy Farm’s methane biodigester converts the methane from cows’ manure into electricity and is on track to generate approximately 250 megawatts of renewable electricity in 2021. The newly designed biodigester technology will help make methane biodigesters more affordable for small-scale organic dairy farms, enabling the reduction of methane (a greenhouse gas which is 86 times more potent than carbon dioxide) emissions and creating additional revenue sources for farmers through the sale of carbon credits through the LCFS program.
A biogas generator currently powers the Straus Organic Dairy Farm and exports energy to the California power grid. In January 2021, the electricity started being used to “power” BMW electric vehicles. This collaboration creates two to four times more revenue than the standard utility agreement for the Straus farm. The biodigester also helps the Straus farm decrease yearly methane emissions by 720 metric tons as it generates renewable energy.
Organic Dairy Farming Creates Cow-Powered Climate Change Solutions
“The exciting thing about dairy biodigesters is that they create a double-carbon emission reduction. On the one hand, they capture methane emissions from manure on farms that would otherwise be released into the atmosphere. And they also produce electricity which replaces fossil-fuel generation on the grid,” said Adam Langton, Energy Services Manager of Connected mobility, BMW of North America.
Farmers are addressing methane emissions under the state’s greenhouse gas reduction laws passed several years ago. These laws mandate a methane emission reduction of 40 percent below 2013 levels by 2030. T
Toyota & Chevron Partner for More Hydrogen
-Chevron U.S.A. Inc., through its Chevron Products Company division (Chevron), and Toyota Motor North America, Inc. (Toyota) announced a memorandum of understanding to explore a strategic alliance to catalyze and lead the development of commercially viable, large-scale businesses in hydrogen, with the goal to advance a functional, thriving global hydrogen economy.
THOR Industries Pick Up America
On Earth Day, THOR Industries , the world’s largest manufacturer of RVs, is reminding anyone who enjoys getting outside to join the pledge to Pick Up America and keep our shared outdoor spaces pristine.
Following a year that saw a dramatic increase in camping, RVing and the use of public lands, as the RV industry leader, THOR is committed to raising awareness for the importance of simply picking up. By mobilizing community members across the U.S. to do their part in keeping outdoor spaces clean, the company hopes to achieve their 2021 Pick Up America pledge goal of removing 150 tons of trash.
Initially launched in 2019, the Pick Up America initiative parallels THOR Industries’ continued focus on reaching long-term sustainability targets and promotes actionable change for those who love to get outdoors. As of today, the program’s inception goal of 50 tons of trash pledged has been exceeded by over 490% and counting.
Hyundai BTS Eco-Friendly
This is Hyundai Motor’s second Earth Day video starring BTS, the first of which was released last year, generating over 100 million views on YouTube. Hyundai Motor has collaborated with BTS on its global hydrogen campaign since last year to spread awareness on the importance of sustainable practices and the future of hydrogen as a source of clean energy under the slogan ‘Because of You.’
The video shows BTS members taking part in simple eco-friendly activities that can easily be incorporated into everyday routines, in an effort to encourage others to do the same.
Volvo Climate Goals
Volvo is aiming for annual savings of SEK 1 billion, roughly £84 million, and reductions of 2.5 million tonnes in carbon emissions from 2025 using circular business principles.
Supporting the company’s long-term goal of becoming a circular business by 2040, Volvo Cars will create closed material loops for emission-heavy materials such as steel and aluminium, as well as remanufacture, repair, reuse and refurbish parts.
With the sales start this year of three new heavy-duty all-electric models, Volvo Trucks believes the time is right for a rapid upswing in electrification of heavy road transport. This positive outlook is based on the ability of Volvo’s electric trucks to meet a broad variety of transport needs. In the EU for example, almost half of all truck transports could be electrified in the near future.
Large national and international transport buyers are showing strong interest in electric vehicles. This is being driven by their own ambitious climate goals, as well as consumers demand for decarbonisation and cleaner transports.
Turo Carbon Offsets
Starting on Earth Day, Turo will become the first car sharing or car rental marketplace to offset 100 percent of its estimated global carbon emissions. This commitment will offset emissions based on the total number of miles driven on Turo trips, and all emissions from its global office footprint. As the world’s largest car sharing marketplace, Turo is taking an urgent next step towards fighting climate change and making the car sharing industry more sustainable.
Efforts to reduce Turo’s carbon footprint come at a time when hosts on the platform are already adding significantly more electric vehicles.
“Bluesource is very excited to partner with the Turo team as they continue their industry-leading climate commitments and embark on this offsetting program,” said Bluesource Vice President, Ben Massie.
Turo will be carbon neutral through an investment in emission reduction projects, including a transportation efficiency project and two sustainable forestry projects, one in British Columbia and another in Alaska. By directly funding these projects, Turo supports the choices of the project owners to go above and beyond what is required of them. Turo chose high-quality, third-party-verified projects through its partner, Bluesource, the leading carbon offset developer. The projects Turo chose to support are located in markets across the US and Canada.