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Plug In America

We all know buying a car is hard. But getting an electric model can be a truly difficult project.

There were over 40 electric vehicle makes and models available for sale in the United States in 2019. However, only a dozen or so were available at Nevada’s car dealerships that same year.

Many Nevadans want electric cars. Sometimes, folks are willing to travel out of state or buy cars online without a test drive, just to purchase their preferred model. Not only is this a hassle, but it means money that could be spent in the Silver State is going elsewhere. 

Adopting Clean Car Standards can help provide more electric vehicles in Nevada. In June of 2020, Governor Steve Sisolak announced the Clean Cars Nevada initiative, which could bring the Low-Emission Vehicles (LEV) and Zero-Emission Vehicles (ZEV) programs to Nevada. 

The ZEV program in particular ensures that each year, automakers deliver more vehicles that are partly or fully zero emissions (such as plug-in hybrid or full electric vehicles) for sale in Nevada. The eleven states that have adopted the ZEV program have seen increased availability of electric and plug-in hybrid vehicle models as a result. 

Plug In America

Transportation is Nevada’s biggest source of air pollution and greenhouse gases, and some of the worst vehicles on the roads are old, dirty diesel trucks and buses. To protect the health of Nevada’s children, we need to make sure more of their rides to school come from a zero-emissions electric school bus.

The 2019 State of the Air report from the American Lung Association gave Clark and Washoe Counties an F grade for ozone pollution, a major component of smog, and vehicle emissions are a primary cause. The ALA reports show that this air pollution has been getting worse. The 2020 State of the Air report ranks the Las Vegas-Henderson metro area as the 9th most polluted in the country for ozone and the 25th most polluted for particulate matter.

Air pollution from gas-powered vehicles including carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, particulate matter, and volatile organic compounds can worsen health problems. Children, the elderly, and people with conditions such as asthma or heart disease have a harder time breathing with these pollutants in the air. Low-income families and communities of color are often closer to major roads and bear the brunt of these health issues.

Plug In America

Some neighborhoods face major health and economic problems because they’re surrounded by old, unreliable, and polluting vehicles. It’s important that we address these inequities and create an electric vehicle future for all.

Air pollution from gas-powered cars including carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, particulate matter, and volatile organic compounds can worsen health problems. Children, the elderly, and people with conditions such as asthma or heart disease have a harder time breathing with these pollutants in the air. Low-income families and communities of color are often closer to major roads and bear the brunt of these health issues.

On top of that, low-income families often struggle to get newer vehicles, and pay for it in the long run.

“A lot of these families are depending on very old, unreliable cars that may have been cheap to buy but are very expensive to maintain,” said Jeff Allen of Forth Mobility. “Electric vehicles can really help families begin to save more money and advance economically.”

E2 | Susan Nedell, Mountain West Advocate

Have you heard about the Clean Cars Nevada initiative, but are not sure what it is or if it will benefit your business? E2 and Ceres have you covered with a recorded virtual panel discussion: Electrifying Transportation in Nevada. 

During the discussion, a trio of experts explained the process to adopt Clean Car Standards by the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection (NDEP), provided the latest electric vehicle (EV) market developments, and highlighted the benefits that transportation electrification — think more EVs and charging stations — will bring to the business community and all drivers across the state.

Jeffrey Kinder, Chief of the Bureau of Air Pollution Control at NDEP, set the stage for the panel with an overview of the state’s 2019 greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) inventory and the GHG emission reduction targets established by the 2019 Legislature. In short, transportation (cars, trucks, buses, delivery vans, etc.) is the biggest contributor to GHG emissions in Nevada. In order to meet Nevada’s strong emissions reduction goals, the state must reduce pollution caused by transportation.

Plug In America

Get ready to change the way you think about electric vehicles in Nevada. Already, a range of cars are on the roads, from luxury Jaguars and Porches to affordable Leafs. There’s even an all-electric motorcycle available for sale. And when it comes to seeing more electric vehicles in Nevada, that’s just the beginning.

“In the next year or two, I think we’re going to start to see a lot of larger vehicles coming out — SUVs and pickup trucks,” said Joel Levin of Plug In America.

New companies are already racing to get these new options out to consumers. And it seems that every day, a major auto manufacturer announces that customers’ favorite truck and SUV models are going electric. That includes the vehicle that was once the poster child for gas guzzling — the Hummer. 

Plug In America

People who drive EVs love their cars. Why? Because owning an electric vehicle is easy and saves drivers money.

First, let’s talk about sticker price. A brand new electric car in Nevada starts as low as $22,400, and cheaper options are on the way. Like all new technology, electric vehicles are becoming more affordable as they become more common. Another benefit of more EVs hitting the roads is that more certified pre-owned and used electric vehicles are becoming available at even lower prices.

But it’s after you buy that the benefits of owning an electric vehicle really start to add up. Electric vehicle drivers never need to pay for oil changes or smog checks. There are no belts to break. Brakes wear more slowly. EVs are low maintenance, and less maintenance means more money in your pocket.

Electric zero-emissions vehicles also save drivers money and time at the fuel pump. EV owners can drive right past the gas station and charge their vehicle at home while they sleep at night, or at work while they’re on the clock. If you compare the cost of electricity to gasoline, driving an EV in Nevada costs about $1.04 per e-gallon. 

Plug in America

Transportation is the biggest source of Nevada’s greenhouse gas emissions. Most of this air pollution comes from gas-powered cars, trucks, and buses, making them a top target as we work to fight climate change. According to the 2019 Nevada Statewide Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory and Projections, transportation will be the leading source of climate emissions for decades to come. 

But it doesn’t have to be this way. 

Nevadans can alter this course by adopting Clean Car Standards and driving more electric vehicles. Clean Car Standards include two components that enable states to fight climate change by reducing harmful emissions from passenger vehicles: Low-Emission Vehicle (LEV) standards that reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and  a Zero-Emission Vehicles (ZEV) program to put more clean electric vehicles on the road.

Plug in America

The electric vehicle (EV) industry is bringing a whole new set of high-quality jobs to Nevada. The Tesla Gigafactory near Reno is one example, employing thousands of workers and becoming a major contributor to our state’s economic activity. More EVs lead to more jobs in our state.

“I think there’s a lot of opportunities here in this state for growth in this sector. It only makes sense that we leverage electric technology like EVs to propel us forward,” said Assemblyman Tom Roberts from District 13.

Nevada is also home to lithium deposits, an important material for the batteries found in EVs. This means even more opportunities to diversify the state’s economy. “We see an opportunity in bringing some of the [battery] supply chain into Nevada and helping Nevadans go to work in a new industry,” said Kristopher Sanchez from the Nevada Governor’s Office of Economic Development.

Las Vegas Sun | Jasmine Vazin

Nevada is on the front lines of the climate crisis with two of the fastest warming cities, Las Vegas and Reno, in the nation.

Each year, extreme heat events — a series of unusually hot days — happen more frequently and for longer in our state. Heat is the single deadliest climate-related disaster in our nation, and the heat waves we’re experiencing here at home are a direct threat to the safety and security of Nevadans — now and for decades to come.

The impacts of climate change are being felt right now, especially by our most vulnerable. Our neighborhoods are getting hotter and more unbearable, and a history of oppressive redlining, loan blocking, and lack of resources from local governments has left communities of color — with more pavement and less trees than white neighborhoods — hit by the urban island heat effect the hardest. If we don’t act, intertwining social and environmental crises will continue to exacerbate existing inequities and hurt Nevadans.

The Nevada Independent | Bernadette Longo

The heat wave we are experiencing here in Nevada is not just uncomfortable; it’s also part of a dangerous trend that we often overlook in our day-to-day lives. Scientific studies have confirmed the Earth’s climate is changing. Many observable changes are a result of the increased greenhouse gases emitted from human activities. Extreme weather events such as heatwaves are likely to become more frequent or more intense. The increased drought in the southwestern United States is placing our communities at higher risk for wildfires. But what do heat waves and wildfires have to do with health? The answer — it exacerbates pollution in the air we breathe.  

Plug in America | Nevada Transportation Electrification Forum

Electric vehicles are fun to drive. Test drive one and see for yourself! 

Today’s electric cars and trucks are like driving computers on wheels, or a spaceship as some point out, with more torque than you can handle. Because there’s an entirely new type of engine in these vehicles, they accelerate much faster than what most drivers are used to. A typical electric car can go from 0 to 60 in 2.4 to 7 seconds!

Plug in America

Electric vehicles are becoming more and more prevalent. With more than 40 models available and many cars and trucks headed to showrooms in the next couple of years, Nevada consumers are asking: Can I afford to drive an electric vehicle?

For decades, buying a car or truck has meant factoring in not only the sticker price and monthly payment, but also the cost of regularly filling up the gas tank and replacing the many parts of an internal combustion engine that wear out over time. 

With an electric car or truck, those costs practically vanish.

“There are savings that consumers can experience as well by avoiding maintenance issues [and] avoiding having to fuel up all the time,” said Will Barrett with the American Lung Association. 

Plug in America | Nevada Transportation Electrification Forum

Breathe easier with more electric vehicles on the road

Forbes | Mike Scott

The need to tackle climate change and local air quality, coupled with oil market volatility, will keep EV market on course for growth.

The Covid-19 pandemic has had a devastating impact across the economy, and the automotive sector is no exception. Consultancy BCG forecasts that “automotive sales most likely will decrease 14-22% among the China, US and European markets in 2020.”

EarthJustice | EarthJustice Staff

It’s more than just passenger cars now — from New York to Mississippi, you may find yourself on a quiet, zipping electric transit bus. The first electric fire truck in the nation will be welcomed by Angelenos in 2021 — and in the coming years, electric sanitation trucks will be quietly gliding through neighborhoods to pick up garbage and recycling, and more electric trucks will be delivering packages from warehouses to homes, air pollution-free.

Las Vegas Sun | Rochelle Nguyen

I got behind the wheel of an electric vehicle for the first time this year at an event co-hosted by Plug In America and Clark County’s Department of Environment and Sustainability.

I was excited to test out a car that’s so much better for the environment, and one that can save families like mine money at the pump.

Nevada Public Radio | Bert Johnson

Governor Steve Sisolak announced this week his administration would pursue vehicle efficiency standards set by California.

That would mean more electric vehicles would be available for Nevadans to buy – and stricter fuel efficiency limits on gas-powered cars.

The policy would be based on the standards adopted by California. Officials say they’ll reduce air pollution and hopefully, reduce the impact of climate change in Nevada.

Reno Gazette Journal | Patricia Valderrama

Governor Steve Sisolak’s Monday announcement that Nevada may join the 14 states that have fully or partially adopted Clean Car Standards is his latest policy to help Nevadans drive electric. He signed the Nation’s Clean Car Promise. His administration joined nearly two dozen other states to defend their right to protect their citizens from smoggy air. He even signed legislation to get more electric school buses on the road.

The Detroit Bureau | Joseph Szczesny

The state of Nevada is joining California and more than a dozen other states in a coalition advocating for tougher clean car standards that are supposed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and improve air quality.

The Nevada Independent | Riley Snyder

Gov. Steve Sisolak and state environmental officials are proposing a set of regulations that would adopt California’s standards for low or zero-emission vehicles by 2024 as part of an effort to reduce carbon emissions and fight climate change.

Las Vegas Review Journal | Colton Lochhead

CARSON CITY — Gov. Steve Sisolak announced that Nevada will move to adopt California’s auto-pollution standards, a move that comes as state officials have pushed back against the Trump administration’s decision to relax federal vehicle emission standards in recent months.

Nevada Clean Cars Coalition

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

CARSON CITY – Governor Sisolak and his administration today initiated a rulemaking process for Clean Car Standards, joining more than a dozen other states in a commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and provide Nevadans with healthier air.

Nevada Clean Cars Coalition

Dear Governor Sisolak, we write to thank your administration for initiating a rulemaking to adopt Clean Car Standards and taking this essential step toward healthy air, expanded consumer options, and a clean energy economy.

LAS VEGAS (KTNVO — Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford and a multistate coalition of states, cities and counties filed a lawsuit challenging the Trump Administration’s final rule rolling back the national Clean Car Standards.

The Hill | Rebecca Beitsch

:President Trump’s rollback of Obama-era mileage standards last week may prove to be one of the administration’s most vulnerable environmental overhauls as opponents prepare to challenge it in court

Reno Gazette Journal | Aaron Ford

Nevada faces an unprecedented public health and economic crisis due to the COVID-19 virus.

While Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak has focused on fighting the virus and keeping families safe, the Trump administration has taken this opportunity to enact a political agenda that threatens the health of Nevadans. Recently, federal agencies finalized a rollback of clean car standards that were set to protect our lungs, save us money and fight climate change.

Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and Nevada Governor’s Office of Energy

This rollback hurts Nevadans by undermining deployment of new clean vehicle technologies, increasing tailpipe emissions that harm public health, and exacerbating climate change through increased air pollution. And most importantly, it will cost consumers more money at the gas pump during these most difficult and uncertain financial times.

Transportation Today | Douglas Clark

Nevada decision-makers and statewide transportation industry leaders gathered recently for the Nevada Transportation Electrification Forum to discuss transportation electrification and its potential benefits.

Union of Concerned Scientists | David Reichmuth

Nevada faces an unprecedented public health and economic crisis due to the COVID-19 virus. While Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak has focused on fighting the virus and keeping families safe, the Trump administration has taken this opportunity to enact a political agenda that threatens the health of Nevadans.

Las Vegas Sun | John Sadler

Nevada is expected to be crisscrossed by a highway system full of electric-vehicle charging stations by the end of the year, and the state’s steady march forward on the issue has earned one stretch of road a federal designation.

Ceres | Troy Shaheen

Ceres announces the launch of a new alliance to help companies accelerate the transition to electric vehicles, a key component of tackling the climate crisis.

KD Electric | Damon Hobbs

KD Electric are electrical contractors in Reno, Nevada. They are full service Reno electrical contractors and cover the entire area. This means the company does any electrical services, including EV chargers

Reno Gazette Journal | Emily Duff and Katherine Stainken

As the year comes to a close, it’s exciting to reflect on the growth of the electric vehicle market and the progress we’ve made on clean energy as we prepare for opportunities to come in 2020. We’re not just thinking about the new EV models that are set to appear on the road, but also the states that are stepping up their leadership on clean energy and getting charged up for an electrified transportation future.

ENRSouthwest | Doug Puppel

What has been dubbed the “New Nevada” now meets the Old West in the state’s hardscrabble mining communities like Beatty and Tonopah. There, electric vehicle charging stations can be found amid the last-chance saloons, sagging buildings and “haunted” hotels typical of fading boomtowns.

Grist | Emily Pontecorvo

After decades of steadily declining, air pollution is once again on the rise in the United States. Between 2016 and 2018, pollution of fine particulate matter — tiny particles that are emitted whenever we burn anything — rose by more than 5 percent.

Las Vegas Sun | Senator Catherine Cortez-Masto

Climate change is a threat to our way of life in Southern Nevada, causing hotter temperatures, more severe drought conditions that affect our water supply, and more frequent and dangerous flash flood conditions.

Nevada Independent | Jana Sayson and Riley Snyder

It’s about to become a little less risky for electric car owners to make the lengthy desert drive between Las Vegas and Southern California.

Digital Journal | Damon Hobbs

KD Electric, a group of electricians in Reno, Nevada, are pleased to announce a new partnership with ChargePoint, a global provider of electrical charging stations for electric cars. The team will be providing various locations, including individual homes, with charging stations.

Facebook | Chispa Nevada

Air pollution disproportionately impacts communities of color. Latino children are twice as likely to die from asthma — and for African American children, that number is tenfold.

The Nevada Independent | Dr. Mary L. House

The year was 1982, and my husband Clinton and I were sitting on the sidewalk outside our Fresno, California apartment during an intense heatwave. While we typically stayed indoors to avoid summer heat, that day the heatwave had triggered a power outage. When I noticed the lights were still on at the property manager’s apartment and asked him why, he explained he had a solar-powered generator that stored energy for when he needed it, like during outages. He went on to explain how the generator also offset his utility costs. What he said sparked my curiosity. 

YouTube | Nevada Conservation League NCL

Why are more Nevadans than ever choosing to go electric? Cleaner air to breathe, a stronger, sustainable economy for Nevada and a better future for our kids. And you’ll save thousands of dollars a year while reducing your carbon footprint.

Bluegreen Alliance | Bluegreen Alliance Staff

Now, just as people are looking at gas prices before they get on the road, we’re having a debate in Washington, D.C. about whether to continue America’s strong fuel economy and greenhouse gas reduction standards for cars, SUVs, and trucks. Thanks to those standards, millions of Americans who driving bigger vehicles—families taking their kids to the beach, contractors hauling equipment, farmers heading out to the fields—will be saving big at the pump.

YouTube | League of Conservation Voters

Join Chispa Nevada in asking Nevada leaders to support electric vehicles.

Union of Concerned Scientists | David Reichmuth

It’s clearer every day: the future of transportation is electric. We should be cheering this transition—and encouraging it, because along with the benefits for drivers, electrifying transportation is going to be a critical piece of fighting climate change.

American Lung Association | Will Barrett

The American Lung Association’s Year of Air Pollution and Health seeks to raise awareness of the health impacts of air pollution, and to generate support for the solutions needed to provide healthy air for every American.

Las Vegas Sun | Miranda Wilson

There’s an environmental concern that comes with building a sprawling city in the desert — and no, it’s not just about water supply.