Remember when you were a kid trying to cross the road and your parents would take a second to remind you, “look both ways before crossing.” You would nod but think, if there were a car, wouldn’t you hear it? This used to be the case, but because of the ever increasing popularity of electric vehicles (EVs) in Virginia, that silently humming Tesla Model 3 might just sneak up on you.
According to Statista, EVs’ popularity in Virginia has grown since the early 2010s with numbers exploding in 2018, and Virginia having 6,375 registered EVs. In 2023, this number has grown to 56,610.
The growing EV culture has touched the Town of Vienna in many different ways—most notably, the EV chargers lining the Wawa parking lot, or the reserved parking spaces at Walgreens and PetCo for cars who need to charge. Kelly Field, a Madison social studies teacher, talks about the EV culture explosion on the East Coast,
“It’s actually crazy how much EV culture has boomed here,” Field said. “I went from rarely seeing a Tesla to seeing them everywhere!”
Field discusses how EV culture has affected businesses in the area. Noting how places such as the supermarket are now a popular stop for EV owners.
“Here at Merrifield you can charge EVs in the lower part of the parking structure,” Field said. “The gas stations obviously have [ESVE ports] and I always see like seven Tesla’s or EVs just lined up at grocery stores now too.”
Vienna is quickly becoming the best place for up and coming EV owners due to its array of charging options, but what happens when an EV travels outside this green town? James McNabb, a math teacher at Madison talks about his experience traveling across the country with an EV.
“You just have to plan your routes around known charging stations,” McNabb said. “When we went up to Princeton, the chargers were present everywhere it seemed like. Then we went to [the University of Virginia], which we thought there’d be far more [ESVE ports] available. There were like one or two in the parking lot, so each place is different.”
While it may look like the economy is heading closer to net zero carbon emissions, there are some setbacks keeping the United States from reaching optimal lows. Human crisis is occurring due to the level of demand for cobalt to create lithium ion batteries used in smartphones, computers and EVs.
78% of the world’s cobalt is sourced from mines in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Due to a lack of regulations regarding workers wages and mineral extraction, miners work in hazardous, degrading conditions for a small wage. This system produces thousands of tons of cobalt per year with no reimbursement for the workers. In addition to this, the mines destroy the natural resources in the area. Miles of trees have been cut down, water sources and air have been toxically contaminated.
The production and usage of EVs is a complex topic. However it can be agreed upon that EV’s are on the right step on the path towards net zero carbon emissions.Their engineering has created a small piece of the solution to global warming. Field summarizes her thoughts on the usage of EVs.
“I believe that a positive EV impact is possible as long as we make these modifications [to the electrical grid] and update our infrastructure so that it can [support EV owners throughout the country],” Field said. “I definitely think that we are making good steps forward and I don’t think that these issues should stop us from continuing down this path.”