...SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 6 AM HST FRIDAY...
* WHAT...East winds 15 to 25 kt with gusts up to 35 kt and seas
7 to 10 feet.
* WHERE...Oahu Windward Waters, Oahu Leeward Waters, Kaiwi
Channel, Maui County Windward Waters, Maui County Leeward
Waters, Maalaea Bay, Big Island Leeward Waters and Big Island
Southeast Waters.
* WHEN...Until 6 AM HST Friday.
* IMPACTS...Conditions will be hazardous to small craft.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
Inexperienced mariners, especially those operating smaller
vessels, should avoid navigating in these conditions.
&&
HONOLULU (KITV4) -- It's National Drive Electric Week and on Tuesday President Joe Biden had a big announcement to make: Hawaii's electric vehicle infrastructure deployment plan has been approved ahead of schedule.
The plan includes installing 820 public charging ports along 788 miles of designated EV corridors in the islands. The more than $6 million in funds come from Biden's bipartisan infrastructure law.
Those funds will help Hawaii in its ongoing commitment to cut carbon emissions 70% by 2030. It's all hands on deck to transition to greener energy options.
Of course charging points are a necessity as drivers make the switch to clean air cars. But the question remains, how will this additional strain to our state's energy infrastructure impact communities moving forward?
A major concern that remains at the forefront of this conversation is firstly how few chargers there really are in the state.
According to Hawaiian Electric (HECO), nearly 3,600 public charging stations would need to be made available to meet the necessary demand by 2030.
Across the islands, we currently have around 780 stations, which means we're looking at the installation of a not hundreds but thousands of new charging stations within the next decade.
“The overarching framework around this is the idea of de-carbonization. And so as we decarbonize the grid, transportation is the largest emitter of greenhouse gasses. We want to make sure as our grid becomes more renewable and cleaner. We can support this overall transition to decarbonize the transportation sector as well. So, our entire energy portfolio whether it's in transportation or for the grid is all coming from really clean sources,” said Aki Marceau, director of electrification of transportation at HECO.
HECO estimates one charger can cost up to $180,000, so it really is an investment into the future.
Approximately $18 million from the Infrastructure Investment Act is expected to aid Hawaii's EV efforts in the next five years.