- Petaluma, California - a city of 61,000 residents and 15 square miles in size - has become the first in the country to permanently halt the construction of new gas stations. The legislation will also outlaw new pumps at existing stations and streamline the process for adding more EV infrastructure like electric charging bays and hydrogen fuel cell facilities. The new prohibition is part of Petaluma's plan to completely phase out carbon emissions by 2030, though other environmental groups (like CONGAS) are pushing for a ban on the entire Sonoma County, which includes Petaluma and eight other cities.
- "The goal here is to move away from fossil fuels and to make it as easy as possible to do that," said D'Lynda Fischer, the city councilor who introduced the measure. "Right now, we have existing fossil fuel stations, and what we want them to do is add [electric vehicle] chargers and create another source of fueling people can use."
- Bigger picture: There are an estimated 450,000 brownfield sites in the U.S., or areas where expansion, redevelopment, or reuse may be complicated by the presence of a hazardous substance. According to the EPA, approximately one-half of them are thought to be impacted by petroleum, much of it from leaking underground storage tanks at old gas stations. The sites "blight the surrounding neighborhoods, threaten human health and the environment and can contaminate groundwater."
- Outlook: While the latest move is taking place at the grassroots level, there are other developments happening at the state level in California. Last year, the state banned the sale of new gas-powered cars by 2035 and will require 75% of heavy trucks sold locally to be electric by that date. There are also plans to build an electric highway along the Pacific Coast. A host of policies are also being prepared at the federal level, like the Biden administration's $2T climate and infrastructure plan, which could boost renewables and other sustainable stocks.
- Related tickers: ABB (NYSE:ABB), Blink Charging (NASDAQ:BLNK), BP (NYSE:BP), ChargePoint (NYSE:SBE), Chevron (NYSE:CVX), ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP), EVBox (NYSE:TPGY), Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM), Newborn Acquisition (NASDAQ:NBAC), Phillips 66 (NYSE:PSX), Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A, RDS.B), Sunoco (NYSE:SUN), Switchback Energy (SBE), Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA), Total (NYSE:TOT), Valero (NYSE:VLO).