Getting Washington Off Oil
Imagine being able to drive a car that consumes no oil, produces no tailpipe pollution, keeps our air clean and protects our climate. This technology has arrived, but Washington is falling behind other states in putting clean, electric cars on the road. As we stall, the price of our oil addiction is taking its toll.
Driving our oil addiction
With rising global demand and instability in the Middle East pushing prices ever higher, oil dependence takes an enormous bite out of our paychecks and our economy. But the prices that we pay with our wallets are only a fraction of the true costs of our addiction to oil.
We pay for it with our lungs, every time we breathe in toxic chemicals released from burning oil. And we pay for it when we suffer through the worsening effects of global warming, from rising sea levels to more extreme weather.
We also pay for our oil with our beaches, coasts and oceans. In 2010, the Deepwater Horizon oil disaster dumped 200 million gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico and contaminated thousands of miles of coastline. And in 2011, an Exxon Mobil pipeline spilled 42,000 gallons of oil into the Yellowstone River, which runs through the National Park.
Thankfully, a solution is in sight.
Charging forward with electric cars
To break our addiction to oil, we urgently need to transition to clean and electric cars.
But there's good news: Prompted by state action that we helped make happen, the U.S. is making enormous strides toward cars and trucks that use less gas and pollute less. Now it’s time to take the next step and once again, we can lead the way.
Our leaders have a huge opportunity to shift Washington away from oil by passing a zero emissisions vehicle (ZEV) standard.
By setting a zero ZEV standard, Washington could put more than 30,000 electric vehicles on the road over the next 12 years, taking a huge chunk out of global warming emissions and air pollution from burning oil.
A ZEV standard would cut 200,000 barrels of oil and fight global warming. On our current energy grid, this would cut over 55,000 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions, and if we charged these cars with renewable energy, like solar, we could cut even more: close to 140,000 metric tons of global warming pollution. The result will be cleaner air, a safer climate, and a more prosperous economy for all Washington families.
But we can only convince our leaders in Olympia to act if we show them overwhelming support for clean cars.
Special interests stand in the way
The oil industry and auto manufacturers are fighting this program and working to prevent us from moving to a clean transportation system. By speaking out, we can overcome this opposition and get thousands of clean cars on the road by 2025.
Urge your elected officials to put 30,000 electric vehicles on the road by 2025.
Key Facts
- Greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles are the largest source of global warming pollution in Washington.
- Moving towards the Clean Car Standard of 15% electric vehicles in Washington would put over 30 thousand electric vehicles on the road over the next 12 years. This would cut 200,000 barrels of oil.
- More electric cars means cutting our global warming pollution by 55,000 – 140,000 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions.
- Enacting a strong electric vehicles standard is a crucial step to reducing our oil dependence and cutting global warming pollution. However, small changes can also add up to a big difference. Top 10 Tips to use less oil and shrink your carbon footprint.