French roads

France plans to fully end the sale of fossil fuel-powered vehicles by 2040 in an effort to become a carbon-neutral nation, Energy Minister Nicolas Hulot announced Thursday in Paris. (emphasis added)

Aiming to be the world’s “number one green economy,” Hulot said gas and diesel-powered vehicles would be phased out over the course of the next two and a half decades, part of a larger effort to meet targets set by the Paris climate agreement. Coal-fired power plants will be eliminated, Hulot said, and citizens will be encouraged to produce their own energy, especially those who own homes. France will also introduce tax incentives — likely in the form of a pollution tax on aging vehicles, or a tax break tied to the purchase of new, cleaner cars — under the ambitious Climate Plan, in addition to ending oil and gas exploration on French land. While Hulot did not detail how France would enact these plans, he emphasized that the […]