There are hundreds of stretches and long lonesome miles of road in Wyoming, and not a charging station to be found.
That’s one reason the Wyoming legislature is looking at a resolution that has been introduced to phase out new electric vehicle sales by 2035 — they’re bad for the state’s economy, which is part cowboy, part oil and gas, part tourism.
“The proliferation of electric vehicles at the expense of gas-powered vehicles will have deleterious impacts on Wyoming’s communities and will be detrimental to Wyoming’s economy and the ability for the country to efficiently engage in commerce,” according to the bill. It notes that the batteries used in electric vehicles contain critical minerals, and the domestic supply of those rare earth minerals is limited and at risk for disruption. China has become the dominant supplier for the minerals needed to build electric car batteries.
What’s more, those critical minerals and spent batteries need to go somewhere when they reach the end of their useful life, and that’s a landfill nightmare. “The critical minerals used in electric batteries are not easily recyclable or disposable, meaning that municipal landfills in Wyoming and elsewhere will be required to develop practices to dispose of these minerals in a safe and responsible manner,” according to the legislation, which refers to electric cars as a “misadventure.”
Adding new power charging stations would require “massive” amounts of new power, according to the lawmakers.
While 15 other states have moved to reduce or ban gas-powered cars, the Senate resolution instructs Wyoming’s secretary of state to send a copy of SJ0004 to Gov. Gavin Newsom of California, who has been at the forefront of banning gas-powered cars since becoming governor in 2019.
The bill says that before the ban would go into effect, Wyoming residents would be encouraged to not purchase electric vehicles.
The bill has been referred to the Senate Minerals, Business & Economic Development Committee.
WY needs to go all out and write tickets to out of state travelers who pass through with electric vehicles. Then, impose huge taxes on residents who continue to own and drive their older electric vehicles.
Why?
Don’t ban them. Just don’t do a thing to support them.
Well, with so many horses in their State, why didn’t they also ban gasoline vehicles years ago?
Because they are not stupid. That’s why.
No horse can produce as much work as a single truck. And the trucks have the advantage of being able to haul horses.
They’re spot on about the environmental impact of battery production. The environmental toll of lithium mining and the near slave labor to produce it is terrible. The Chinese have cornered the market on the precious metals and could disrupt our supply chain. There is no plan in place for recycling of spent batteries.
Jim, more importantly is the question of where will you get the Electrical Power to charge all of those car batteries. It’s a Cart before the Horse thing, this mandating EV’s without the Grid to support them.
However, If I still lived in Juneau, I would look seriously into getting an EV, why? Because you have an abundant source of Green Hydro- Electric Power, short drives and as a bonus, your Left-Wing Commie neighbors would approve! (just kidding about the J-Town Democrats).
Why Wyoming could just burn more coal Robert. Heheh!
The Chinese aren’t going to do that because they need our wheat. They got a lot of mouths to feed over there. Never fear the Chinese. They’re all about economic rule and have little fight in them. They always look at the big picture and a thousand years into the future. Americans look for 5 o’clock.
Now if they can ban the feds from seting foot on state soil and relocate the left sympathizers I would look to moving there.
Guess you’re not going to have a cell phone either. Electric vehicles don’t make sense in a place like Wyoming except if someone wanted to use one for commuting in the city limits. Then just plug it back in when you get home. That’s what I would do but not for a long haul trip though. I’ve traveled and lived in many Western States with the exception of the Left Coast, and it’s a long way to anywhere out there.
I like the flip of language in this story: Phase out EVs. While CA is phasing out ICVs, we should float the idea of phasing out EVs to save our planet!
I saw a good recent blog on this topic at ‘https://ecency.com/hive-122315/@dwinblood/warnings-from-the-past-be-careful-how-you-think-about-electric-vehicles-evs .
Remember how mercury-filled fluorescent bulbs were the solution to hot incandescent bulbs? Tech needs a driving force and maybe LED bulb development was sped up by by the market demand. Hopefully the energy tech will emerge before too much damage is caused by this need for lithium.
So maybe what you need to do to drive your electric car without worry is to mount a gas powered generator to the roof. Problem solved. Plus you can charge your house when the power goes down.
ROFLMAO
I see this as the “right” adopting a leftist tactic. I disapprove.
As much as I disagree with lithium slaves, I am pro freedom of movement, freedom of choice (not baby murder choice), and freedom of production. The question that lies before us is how do we source materials responsibly?
Another question is … will “greater idaho” join with Eastern Oregon to create a new state? West Virginia did it. I would love to see an article on this broader opinion.
That won’t happen but northern California used to belong to Oregon.
I wish Alaska would do this.
I had always considered Wyoming one of the most freedom-embracing states. I’m amazed that they want to limit people’s free-market choices.
Another strike against EVs is bad winter weather. Cold reduces the effectiveness of the batteries while increasing the load (the heater keeps you warm with electric power after all). Then you have a small, light weight vehicle trying to maneuver in snow, which increases the power draw per mile.
Lets say 50% of the population of Wyoming converts to EVs. At the first below zero Fº, blowing snow, blizzard, how many more vehicles are going to become stranded? What will this cost in dollars for rescue crews and lives of those crewmen and the drivers themselves?
Of course they’re not well-suited to the wide-open prairies! Everything has its place after all, in the same way that a nice compact Glock is a much better choice when out shopping, than an AR with a high-capacity mag.
It depends on where you are going shopping.
What a stupid law from uninformed legislators. So much for standing for freedom of choice from people who are allegedly against “big government”.
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