Opinion: From Highlands to Hatteras: NC on the road to energy independence with EVs
Nearly every U.S. president for the past 50 years has called for either energy independence or increased energy security. With decreasing supply, increasing costs and global conflicts looming, it’s an issue of increasing importance that our country’s leaders recognize needs to be addressed with urgency. Achieving energy security and independence cannot be fully addressed without a focus on electrifying the vehicles Americans drive.
This summer season, as you drive to celebratory picnics or to watch the fireworks, you’re likely to be parking near an electric vehicle or within sight of an electric vehicle (EV) charging station. These sights will continue to become more common as more North Carolinians are buying EVs, and more new companies, like BisonEV, are advancing EV technologies to bring to our state.
Companies are finding North Carolina as a favorable place to locate their EV technology businesses, and BisonEV is one of the latest to set its sights here. Western North Carolina—Robbinsville, in particular—is on BisonEV’s radar as a prospective location for its work to convert traditional gas-powered trucks and buses into electrified vehicles. Given the amount of fuel large vehicles like buses and trucks use, and the long distances they tend to drive, the electrification of these vehicles is an important part of the solution for reducing our reliance on oil and gas. And that’s important for national security since the more we can rely on our own electricity production to power our vehicles, the less we need to rely on other countries for fuel.
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The transportation sector accounts for approximately 70% of U.S. oil consumption. The faster the shift to electric cars and trucks begins, the faster the nation can make a real reduction in the amount of oil the U.S. needs to import. Electric vehicles can reduce fuel costs dramatically due to high efficiency. An electric vehicle’s efficiency is measured in kilowatts (kWh) per 100 miles. Depending on how they are driven, today's light-duty all-electric vehicles can drive 100 miles consuming only 25–40 kWh. Instead of relying on the global oil market, electricity is cheaper, safer and domestically controlled.
North Carolina has set a goal of having 1.25 million electric vehicles registered in the state by the end of the decade. The state is also replacing aging school buses with new electric models. The new zero-emission school buses replace some of the dirtiest diesel buses in the state, including some older than 30 years that emit more than 20 times the nitrogen oxides and particulate matter of today’s clean buses.
The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians were the first North Carolina school district to get an electric school bus. They have now switched to 100% electric buses and are in the process of offsetting the electricity used to charge the buses by installing a solar bus depot canopy. Electric school buses serve as giant rolling batteries. With vehicle-to-everything (V2X) technology, electric school buses can serve as mobile power units, providing emergency backup power during disaster response. When communities are hit by extreme weather events, such as hurricanes, floods, tornadoes and wildfires, electric school buses are mobile power units and useful in enhancing resilience.
Utilizing electric school buses to power critical facilities in emergencies will enhance infrastructure resilience, save lives, and strengthen our energy and national security.
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And for that family road trip to the North Carolina mountains or beach? In the town of Highlands, you will find public charging stations on Main Street. And if you’re driving your EV to Hatteras Island, you’ll find several public and private charging stations on the island. This summer, wherever you travel, as you notice more EVs on the road — or drive your own EV — consider how these vehicles are boosting America’s energy and fuel independence, all while boosting our local economies and creating good jobs for North Carolinians.
Mary Linn is the Florida/Georgia/North Carolina campaign organizer for the Electrification Coalition, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that advances policies to facilitate widespread adoption of plug-in electric vehicles.
Alan Dick is the Vice President of Business Development at BisonEV, which specializes in retrofitting technology to transform existing internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles to electric operated vehicles. BisonEV is in negotiations to locate in Robbinsville.
This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Opinion: From Highlands to Hatteras: NC on road to energy independence
