The zero-emission mandate of the 1990s was misguided because even an all-electric car produces emissions from the power plant generating its electricity, so it merely relocates emissions; moreover the mandate distorted the market by shelving the range-extended hybrid concept (the eventual Volt design) years earlier because it wasn't technically zero-emission.

causalpending

Speaker

Jonathan Rauch

Evidence Quote

what that mandate did do is distort the market so that instead of considering what became the volt years earlier it got put on the shelf

Source

Jonathan Rauch on the Volt, Risk, and Corporate Culture 09/01/2008EconTalk
Created: 6/16/2026, 2:36:26 PM

My Notes

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