Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone signed an executive order on Monday promising to convert all county-owned vehicles to electric by 2030.
Bellone said the order helps support President Biden’s climate goal of cutting the country’s carbon emissions in half by 2030. Transportation contributed 28% of greenhouse gas emissions in 2018, the largest of any contributor, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
“You cannot address climate change — you cannot address this profoundly important issue — if you are not dealing with transportation,” Bellone said.
Under the order, the county will be required to submit a conversion plan, which also includes adding new electric vehicle charging stations at county lots, to the county’s department of public works fleet division in the next 90 days.
Bellone said Suffolk County will continue to implement climate policies due to Long Island being heavily impacted by the consequences of global warming, including extreme weather and rising sea levels.
“We are all at risk from climate change: our economy, our way of life. It is an existential issue, particularly on Long Island, where we are surrounded, in every respect, by water,” Bellone said.
Bellone spoke on May 11 at a joint press conference with Westchester County Executive George Latimer, who pledged the same for his county.