"There is an inherent tension between trade policy - and sometimes social policy - and the goal of accelerating the deployment of clean technology," said Henry Lee, the Jassim M. Jaidah Family Director of Harvard Kennedy School's Environment and Natural Resources Program. "By excluding China's clean energy options, you are going to slow down U.S. efforts to decarbonize its economy and increase the cost. And it might be worth it, for domestic industrial policy. But every trade economist is going to tell you that this is a dumb thing to do if you care about climate."
Lowering auto emissions has long been a key goal in the battle against climate change. The most recent steps taken by the Biden administration include new rules earlier this year intended to force automakers to slash carbon emissions from gasoline-powered models and ramp up sales of electric vehicles, or EVs.
But in May the White House also slapped a 100 percent tariff on EVs from China, which has a big supply of lower-price models that U.S. officials worry could flood the market. It is of particular concern because EVs available here tend to be pricier. So while cheaper imports could boost EV use and cut emissions, they also pose a competitive threat to U.S. automakers, one the administration describes as unfair.
The climate change battle is many-faceted. The push-pull of policy dilemmas like this one offer a lesson in how global and domestic economics and politics (particularly in an election year) further complicate the task of dealing with a warming planet, according to experts on EVs and international trade.
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