AnonymousSource: APCD
Santa Barbara County Air Pollution Control District (APCD) and the Central Coast Clean Cities Coalition (C5) are excited to announce the upcoming regional launch of the California Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Project (CALeVIP) on July 27. CALeVIP, administered by the nonprofit Center for Sustainable Energy, is an effort to accelerate the installation of electric vehicle (EV) charging stations throughout select regions in California. The program is funded with a combination of California Energy Commission funds and local funds. The tri-county region includes Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, and Ventura counties. In Santa Barbara County, nearly $5 million will be awarded to fund an estimated 433 new chargers.
CALeVIP is a first-come, first-served program that offers rebates for the purchase and installation of Level 2 charging stations and DC fast chargers at a variety of location types. This project requires a majority of the total funds in each county to be invested in low-income communities. Here is a timeline of important dates for interested parties:
- July 27: Launch Date
- July 15: Project Requirements Webinar (10am-12pm)
- June 30: Registration opens for Project Requirements Webinar
The July 15 virtual workshop will allow interested parties to gain guidance on the application process and requirements ahead of the July 27 launch date; C5 staff are also available to help answer questions. Registration for the webinar opens on June 30: Register here.
In some areas of the state where CALeVIP has already been implemented, the response has been swift — many times, the totality of funds reserved for an entire region has been spoken for within hours of program launch. APCD strongly encourages all interested parties to attend the webinar and start working with eligible EV charger vendors to get application materials ready to submit when the program launches. For more information about program requirements, view the project website here.
The push to increase EV charging infrastructure across California is in line with the State’s goals related to zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs): 1.5 million ZEVs on the road and 250,000 chargers by 2025 and 5 million ZEVs by 2030, with a goal of all new light-duty cars, trucks, and SUVs sold to be ZEVs by 2035. The CALeVIP regional project areas were selected by the California Energy Commission after analyzing where to fill charging infrastructure gaps as we move closer to these target years. Passenger cars and trucks account for a significant amount of pollution, greenhouse gases, and air toxics; switching from gasoline- and diesel-powered passenger vehicles to zero-emission versions brings notable environmental benefits.
Since 2012, APCD has provided more than $1.1 million in grants to help purchase and install 180 Level 2 charging stations and 10 DC fast chargers in Santa Barbara County. The total count of chargers avaialble for public use in the county is 290 Level 2 charging stations and 35 DC fast chargers. Statewide, there are 26,800 Level 2 charging stations and 5,391 DC fast chargers available for public use.
“We’re proud of the strides our agency has made in helping increase EV infrastructure over the last nine years, and appreciate the enthusiasm of past project applicants in helping build our county’s network of charging stations,” said Aeron Arlin Genet, APCD Director. “CALeVIP presents a tremendous opportunity to ramp up those efforts and help bring our county, region, and state closer to reaching the important clean-car milestones ahead of us.”
APCD has a long history of working closely with partners in the tri-counties on electric vehicle planning and implementation. APCD serves on the Electric Drive 805 coalition’s steering committee, which also includes the Community Environmental Council, Central Coast Clean Cities Coalition (C5), Ventura County Regional Energy Alliance, and the air pollution control districts of Ventura and San Luis Obispo counties. This regional CALeVIP application was a joint effort involving the steering committee members of Electric Drive 805 as well as Central Coast Community Energy (3CE), Clean Power Alliance, and the County of Santa Barbara Community Services Department.
As approved by APCD’s Board of Directors at the May 20, 2021 meeting, APCD has committed $300,000 over a three-year period for this project. CALeVIP is partially funded by the California Energy Commission’s, which allocated up to $200 million to address regional needs for charging stations throughout the state.
To learn more about APCD’s involvement with EV infrastructure, visit www.OurAir.org/ev-charging-program/.
The Central Coast Clean Cities Coalition (C5) is a group of local stakeholders whose mission is to expand the use of alternative fuel vehicles and fueling infrastructure throughout the Central Coast. To learn more about C5, visit www.c-5.org.
To find more information about the resources Electric Drive 805 has to offer, visit www.ElectricDrive805.org.
Given how little California electricity is Green, renewable, these electric cars are primarily fossil fueled. Yes point source pollution is reduced by moving it to the gas turbine generator location. Going all electric when we can’t consistently support the existing electric load is simply Nuts.