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Department of Energy representative outlines ChargeWest corridors, rural resiliency work and firefighter training
Summary
A Department of Energy ChargeWest representative briefed Bryce Canyon City Council on plans to expand fueling and charging infrastructure across eight western states, to support rural resiliency and to provide specialized firefighter training for electric-vehicle and battery incidents.
A Department of Energy representative described the ChargeWest program and urged local engagement on electric-vehicle charging infrastructure, hydrogen and resilient-power planning for small communities.
The presenter said the ChargeWest effort is an eight-state partnership that initially focused on corridor fast-charging along Interstates and is now emphasizing rural communities’ needs for level-2 charging, three-phase power upgrades, resiliency hubs and first-responder training. The speaker described past projects, including propane shuttle conversions in Zion National Park and the development of fast chargers every roughly 50 miles along Interstate 15, and said similar corridor and gateway-community work is planned for the area around Bryce Canyon.
The presenter also described a planned training collaboration with the Los Angeles Fire Department and a regional training center to provide hands-on, train-the-trainer sessions for firefighters to address thermal-runaway or battery-related fires. She said the city should plan for electric vehicles arriving at hotels and in the park and prepare first responders for incidents involving EVs, scooters and residential battery systems.
On technology, the presenter said level-2 charging requires modest power (describing it as roughly the equivalent of a light bulb) while fast DC charging consumes significantly more power; she discussed hydrogen as a likely fuel for medium- and heavy-duty long-haul vehicles and said local fueling assets such as CNG or propane stations could be repurposed in some cases. The presenter asked to return for a formal briefing and to convene a local listening session with community members, utilities and emergency services to map needs and potential sites (she mentioned Mount Farwell Junction and coordination with UDOT as examples).
