Route Zero, a clean energy advocacy organization, held a news conference on the south shore of Lake Estes Tuesday at noon to mark the finalization of the federal clean car standards by the Environmental Protection Agency earlier this spring.
The multi-pollutant emissions standards set increased protective guidelines to reduce air pollutant emissions from light-duty and medium-duty vehicles starting with model year 2027. The news conference highlighted the impact of fossil fuel emissions on the ecosystem of Rocky Mountain National Park.
Flanked by two electric vehicles – a “rapid red” Ford Mustang Mach-E and a blue Rivian R1T pickup truck—seven speakers delivered prepared remarks about the need to reduce fossil fuels as views of the mountains in Rocky Mountain National Park were obscured by a thick haze of smoke from wildfires burning in Canada.
The speakers included Estes Park Mayor Gary Hall; Rocky Mountain National Park Management Specialist and Public Affairs Officer Kyle Patterson; EPA Region 8 Administrator KC Becker; Margaret Krans-Annexstein, Director of the Colorado Sierra Club; Julia Moravcsik, Director of the Denver EV Council; Travis Madsen of the Southwest Energy Efficiency Project; and Laurie Anderson, the Colorado field organizer for Moms Clean Air Force.
Hall spoke about the impact of climate change on Estes Park. “Summer driving season is in full swing, and many families have plans to visit Colorado’s natural wonders, such as Rocky Mountain National Park. Yet the nation’s beloved parks are under significant stress due to climate change. Tailpipe pollution fuels climate change, contributing to more frequent and severe extreme weather events in Colorado.”
Pivoting to the economic impact of pollution, Hall said, “Protecting our national parks is crucial, not just for the environment but for our local economies. Rocky Mountain National Park, which attracted over four million visitors last year, along with other parks in Colorado, serves as a significant economic driver for communities like Estes Park. By reducing tailpipe emissions, we can preserve these natural treasures and ensure they continue to attract visitors, supporting local businesses and jobs.”
Nick Thomas and Teslas
An early adopter of EV technology, local Estes Park resident, Nick Thomas has had several Teslas during the past seven years. Thomas first got a Model X in 2017, and then a Model 3 in 2018. “It was one of the first three in Colorado, actually,” said Thomas who ran as an Independent against Joe Neguse, Peter Yu, and Roger Barris for Colorado’s Second Congressional District. He also has a Cybertruck, a Model Y that he gave to his parents, and his twin drives a Model S.
“The reason we all got Teslas early on is, one, it is flat out the safest car on the road according to Consumer Reports,” said Thomas. “Second, it was the only EV car that could road trip. Everything else basically had to stay within the cities because there was very little charging infrastructure.”
Thomas would like to advocate for additional EV charging stations around town, “I think we should have (EV) chargers on the west side of town and expand the ones at the (parking) garage because I’ve seen them full constantly. I have photos showing 11 different vehicles—11 different brands of vehicles—charging at that one charger in one day. It blew my mind.”
While Thomas has been a Tesla owner, he is an advocate for all brands of EVs, “Back in the day before this infrastructure it was only Tesla’s with their supercharger network that you were able to travel far distances without issue, especially 2017 and 2018, so you had to get a Tesla if you wanted an EV. Now there are options.”
“Nowadays, I tell everybody buy an EV, it doesn’t need to be a Tesla. I’m not brand specific whatsoever anymore, but I think everybody should have an EV. It significantly changes your carbon footprint, and they are significantly safer cars. They’re quieter. They’re more efficient. They’re just fantastic. And not just Tesla’s but all EVs.”
Although the price for EVs has come down, for many people it is not affordable. The average price of an EV in 2024 is $55,000 according to the leading American consumer reviews website for reviews and ratings of solar products. The price of a Tesla ranges from $38,990 to $116,630.
While EVs reduce carbon emissions, they currently run on lithium batteries and many environmental activists have expressed concern about the impact of mining lithium. Although the emissions from mining lithium are lower than the emission from extracting fossil fuels, the process is still energy intensive and can lead to depleting water resources, damaging aquafers, causing ground fissures, creating air and water pollution, degrading the land around a mine, deforestation, and disruption of natural habitats.
And, ironically, the mining process itself can create carbon emissions.
But Thomas says the technologies are improving and by buying EVs, consumers can help fund the needed research and development that will lead to better technologies, such as the use of salt in batteries as a fuel source.
Thomas is such an advocate of EVs that he has rented one of his Teslas more than 160 times through the app Turbo to people for a chance to have a long-term trial with an EV, and many of them have then turned around and decided to buy one. “I love that,” he said. “You have to invest to change, and we know in the long run that something like an EV is going to be better for the environment. We just have to figure out how to get there. We have to improve technology, and the way you improve technologies is you invest in technology, and test technology, and we’re moving in the right direction,” said Thomas.
The transportation sector currently is the leading domestic source of carbon pollution driving climate change in the country and it is the second leading sector in Colorado next to electricity production.
Route Zero is a global initiative working to eliminate carbon emissions from road transportation by promoting zero emission vehicles by 2024.