Energy Department joins effort to eliminate all carbon emissions from transportation by 2050

A framework developed by several federal agencies that has strategies and actions for removing all carbon emissions from transportation by 2050 has been released.

The U.S. National Blueprint for Transportation Decarbonization was developed by the departments of “Energy, Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and the Environmental Protection Agency,” a news release said.

“The domestic transportation sector presents an enormous opportunity to drastically reduce emissions that accelerate climate change and reduce harmful pollution,” U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said in the release. “DOE is prepared to implement this blueprint alongside our partners within the Biden-Harris administration to ensure all Americans feel the benefits of the clean transportation transition [such as] good-paying manufacturing jobs, better air quality and lower transportation costs.”

U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said in the release that, because transportation accounts for a major share of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, it’s important that agencies work together “to confront the climate crisis.”

“Every decision about transportation is also an opportunity to build a cleaner, healthier, more prosperous future,” Buttigieg said in the release. “When our air is cleaner, when more people can get good-paying jobs, when everyone stays connected to the resources they need and the people they love, we are all better off.”

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael Regan said in the release that the EPA is working with federal partners to reduce pollution while saving families money.

“At EPA, our priority is to protect public health, especially in overburdened communities, while advancing the president’s ambitious climate agenda,” Regan said. “This blueprint is a step forward in delivering on those goals and accelerating the transition to a clean transportation future.”

U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Marcia Fudge said in the release that people whom HUD serves “deserve clean, affordable transportation options.”

“HUD is proud to join our federal partners at Energy, DOT and EPA to ensure that clean transportation investments are made equitably and include communities and households that have been most harmed by environmental injustice,” Fudge said in the release. “We look forward to working together to better align transportation, housing, and community development investments in these and other communities across the country.”