There may not have been as much excitement about electricity in one room since Edison had a few people over and flipped the first switch as there was on Tuesday at Bertie High School.
National, state and county officials attended the unveiling of the school’s first electric charging station to be installed at the campus to power the district’s first electric school bus.
U.S. Congressman Don Davis, N.C. State Representatives Shelly Willingham and Bill Ward, Bertie County Commissioners John Trent and Ron Roberson, BCS Superintendent Dr. Otis Smallwood and school board Chair Reba Cooper Carlton each spoke on the quality of a cleaner environment.
Roanoke Cooperative, in partnership with Bertie County Schools, was the force behind the installation. The initiative marks a significant step towards promoting sustainable transportation and clean energy within the community.
"We're thrilled to partner with Bertie County Schools to unveil our latest initiative in sustainable transportation," said Marshall Cherry, President and CEO of Roanoke Cooperative. "Through the EPA Clean School Bus Grant Program, we've electrified a new electric school bus, furthering our commitment to cleaner, greener communities."
Dr. Smallwood was equally excited.
"We're excited to unveil our new electric school bus charger, thanks to the EPA Clean School Bus Grant Program and our partnership with Roanoke Cooperative," said Dr. Smallwood. "This initiative supports our commitment to sustainable transportation options for Bertie County Schools and advances cleaner air and a brighter future for our students."
Funding for the buses came through a grant award of $501,108 allocated from the N.C. Volkswagen Settlement Program. The grant includes $411,558 for the bus and $89,550 to install the charging infrastructure to keep the bus charged and running.
“As a school district, we are always about the business of continuous improvement. Students’ traditional mode of transportation, diesel school buses, is a big emitter of pollutants,” said Dr. Smallwood. “This one effort of obtaining an electric school bus will help to mitigate the negative effects of greenhouse gas emissions.”
Electric buses reduce emissions by 100 percent as the new bus accounts for a reduction in nitrogen oxide emission of 1.04 tons.
One of the benefits of the electric bus is the alleviation of diesel fumes polluting personal air while students wait to board an idling diesel school bus. Electric vehicles are quiet and do not have any exhaust fumes.
In April 2017, a U.S. court approved the third partial settlement addressing civil penalties in the Volkswagen case. These settlements resolved allegations that Volkswagen violated the Clean Air Act by the sale of approximately 590,000 model year 2009 to 2016 diesel motor vehicles equipped with “defeat devices.”
The EPA alleged that these vehicles were equipped with defeat devices in the form of computer software designed to cheat on federal emissions tests.
More than $30.1 million from the N.C. Volkswagen Settlement Program is being distributed by the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality to fund 161 new school buses across the state, with the majority of the funding going toward new all-electric school buses.
The new zero-emission and low-emission school buses are replacing some of the diesel buses in the state, including some older than 30 years that emit more than 20 times the nitrogen oxides (NOx) and particulate matter of today’s clean buses, according to the N.C. Gov. Roy Cooper’s office.
“This will improve the quality of life for future generations. Oftentimes, it is marginalized communities that always suffer the worst from the negative effects of environmental pollution,” said Dr. Smallwood. “So we are excited that our community will have an opportunity to lead the way of preserving our earth and hopefully save lives. I am very thankful for our transportation director, Mr. Wesley Dudley, for his leadership in securing this opportunity for Bertie County Schools.”
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