Climate Action Plan and EV Charging Stations – Press Release

For Immediate Release

Electric Vehicle Chargers Part of Narberth Borough Initiatives to Combat Climate Change

Narberth, PA, August 25, 2021 – The Borough of Narberth, Pennsylvania announced it will hold a ribbon cutting for its electric vehicle chargers on September 10 at 5:00PM near Narberth Park.  These chargers are part of a slate of ambitious new actions to reduce global warming pollution with the goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2040.  The Montgomery County municipality will be taking significant steps to support households and businesses in mitigating greenhouse-gas emissions, as well as reducing emissions from municipal operations, including installing LED streetlights, purchasing renewable electricity, and installing multimodal transportation options among many others.

FLO, a leading EV charging network and solutions provider in North America, sees this as an integral step towards transportation electrification and the increasing need to use clean energy in most life aspects, especially on the road.  “We are pleased to be chosen by Narberth to install the borough’s first EV chargers and to have the opportunity to be part of this important journey towards reduced emissions in the region,” said Louis Tremblay, FLO President and CEO. Our chargers will bring a dependable source of power to current and future EV drivers and lay the foundation for the emerging charging infrastructure in the region.”

“Some of my neighbors are reluctant to get an electric vehicle because they don’t know how they would charge it,” said resident Amy Tecosky-Feldman. “We raised this issue to the Borough and they were receptive.” The Borough is taking advantage of funding from Pennsylvania’s Volkswagen settlement made available by the Department of Environmental Protection to improve EV charging infrastructure in the Commonwealth. Narberth has installed 4 plugs for public use, two at Narberth Park, and two at Essex Ave. The plugs will also enable the Borough to begin transitioning its modest vehicle fleet to plug-ins over time.

The Borough has also committed to switching its purchased electricity to 100 per cent renewable sources, so that the electricity used by the streetlights and other Borough operations will come without global-warming emissions. “It’s great to see the Borough take a leadership role,” said Environmental Advisory Council member, Miriam Shakow.  “Some of my neighbors have made the switch to renewables, and hopefully when others see our local government stepping up, they’ll be inspired to do the same.”

Narberth Borough has developed of a Climate Action Plan that was accepted by Narberth’s Borough Council in September 2020. The plan details the steps Narberth will take to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from transportation, utilities, and municipal waste. Narberth was part of a cohort of 20 municipalities selected by Pennsylvania’s Department of Environmental Protection to work with the international group ICLEI to develop plans to help local communities mitigate greenhouse gas emissions and plan for long-term adaptations that climate change will require in Pennsylvania.

“Even while clean energy jobs are growing faster than fossil fuel jobs, Pennsylvania still accounts for 1% of the world’s carbon footprint,” said Jesse Lytle, chair of Narberth’s Environmental Advisory Council. “Narberth wants to do its part to accelerate the transition to a clean energy economy,” he said.

A group of Narberth residents worked hard over recent years to convince their elected Borough officials to pledge to transition to 100% renewable energy, community-wide, by 2040— one of the most ambitious goals in the state. Many nearby communities in southeastern Pennsylvania have made similar pledges in recent years through the “Ready for 100%” community campaign led by the Sierra Club. “This happened because our citizens gave us a mandate, one that I think my Council colleagues and I were happy to receive,” said Rob McGreevey, a member of Narberth Borough Council since 2018. “If we can make these changes responsibly in Narberth maybe other communities will see they can do it too.”

About Narberth:

Narberth Borough is a Pennsylvania Municipality of just under 5,000 residents bisected by the SEPTA Regional Rail Paoli Line.  Founded in 1895, Narberth is home to its own SEPTA stop, beloved small businesses, and hosts community events such as the Dickens Festival.  For more information, please visit narberthpa.gov.

About FLO:

FLO is a leading North American electric vehicle charging network operator and a major provider of smart charging software and equipment. Every month, FLO enables hundreds of thousands charging events thanks to over 45,000 high-quality stations deployed on public networks, commercial and residential installations. FLO’s headquarters and network operations centre are based in Quebec City, and its assembly plant is located in Shawinigan (Quebec). The company also has an office in Montreal and regional teams located in Ontario, British Columbia, California, New York and Texas. For more information, visit flo.com.