Unhealthy air quality is one of the most critical challenges facing Utah, particularly along the Wasatch Front. According to Envision Utah’s Your Utah, Your Future survey, Utahns overwhelmingly want improved air quality.
When compared to traditional gasoline vehicles, electric vehicles drastically reduce the amount of criteria air pollutants associated with your driving. Criteria air pollutants are responsible for the poor air quality on winter and summer inversion days. Approximately 48% of the criteria air pollutants along the Wasatch Front come from mobile sources (cars and trucks). This means you can take proactive steps towards cleaning up our air by replacing your gasoline vehicle with an EV.
By transitioning our traditional polluting vehicles to cleaner, electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid cars, we can tackle a big part of Utah’s air quality problem.
In fact, according to a 2013 analysis conducted by SWEEP and Utah Clean Energy, “all electric” vehicles produce 99% lower emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), 95% less sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions, and 76% less nitrogen oxides (NOx) emissions as compared to a new gasoline vehicle. Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles reduce emissions significantly as well.
The majority of Utah residents recognize that everyone has a role to play in improving our state’s air quality. Electric vehicles are a great way for individuals and families to make a difference.