‘Green’ technology is helping create jobs across Whatcom County, WA governor says

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee breezed through Whatcom County in an electric car on Tuesday, visiting several locations that have created jobs and expanded efforts to move away from fossil fuels in transportation and construction.

Inslee, who has made efforts to fight climate change a priority, stopped in Ferndale, Kendall and Bellingham to see the results of state-funded programs and alternative-fuel projects, including:

▪ Vicinity Motor Corp., for the opening of a Ferndale factory that produces electric trucks and buses.

▪ Fairhaven Station, where the Washington State Department of Transportation and Amtrak recently began to operate electric buses daily between Seattle and Bellingham.

▪ Downtown Bellingham, where he inspected an EV charging station, one of nearly 100 built across the city with grant funding from the state Department of Commerce.

▪ The East Whatcom Regional Resource Center and the Foothills Food Bank in Kendall, which installed solar panels in 2022 with grants from the Department of Commerce. In addition, Inslee saw the Opportunity Council’s electric Blue Bird bus, a donation from Puget Sound Energy for use with the Head Start school program.

“We want to give people options” when it comes to alternative energy, Inslee told The Bellingham Herald outside the Federal Building in downtown Bellingham, which houses the Public Works Department’s engineering staff.

Bellingham has 163 charging stations, according to the Plug Share app.

In all, the city has 94 alternative fuel vehicles, representing 24% of all light-duty fleet vehicles, spokeswoman Janice Keller told The Herald in an email. That figure includes 38 EVs, 14 plug-in hybrid EVs and 42 hybrids.

“We’re celebrating our investment” in green energy programs, Inslee said.

“Jobs are going crazy,” he said, noting that Vicinity Motors used local contractors to build its plant and hired 300 workers.

“It’s doing good for people. Electricity is cheaper than gas,” he said.

As Inslee inspected the public EV charging station on Magnolia Street, he chatted with city staff members and traded opinions on the various makes of electric cars — calling the Chevrolet Volt that he was traveling in a “zippy” little car.

Bellingham Mayor Seth Fleetwood, a long-time EV fan, drove his Nissan Leaf to the downtown event.

“Our goal is to become a fully carbon-free city. Using EVs in the city’s vehicle fleet and providing charging stations throughout the city are key strategies in our climate action plans,” he told The Herald.