EV Mississippi partnered with the Hub City Humane Society and PetSmart for their Drive Electric Earth day and National Adopt-A-Pet Event on April 23.
The event took place outside of the Hattiesburg PetSmart location on Highway 98.
The event attracted a hefty crowd with its centralized location and scenery. Equipped with food vendors such as Twilly Philly, Kona Ice and a total of 11 electric vehicles on display, there was more than enough for attendees to look at and satisfy their needs.
The Hub City Humane Society is an animal shelter that services Lamar County and the City of Petal to provide care to homeless, neglected and abused animals. Pets were available for on-site adoption inside of PetSmart.
EV Mississippi is a non-profit organization advocating for the support of hybrid and electric vehicles.
According to the Drive Electric Earth Day (DEED) website, Drive Electric Earth Day is a national campaign to share information about electric vehicles throughout the month of April.
April is known as Earth Month, which highlights the importance of caring for the earth and preserving its resources.
Earth Day is on April 22 and is the day on which the month’s events are centered around.
Powerlines Seattle reports that investing in the planet can take many forms such as financial, physical, political and artistic outlets.
Josh Hazel, with EV Mississippi, says that EV Mississippi is an advocate for Earth Day and the adoption of electric vehicles.
“The purpose of this event, this was our spring drive electric event and we also partnered with PetSmart and hub city humane society to do a pet adoption and a drive electric event,” Hazel said.
By using electric vehicles, people can reduce their carbon footprint and have an impact on global emissions.
The Department of Energy reports that, unlike gasoline-powered vehicles, electric cars emit no tailpipe pollutants when running on electricity–cleaning the air that we breathe. They are also less expensive for maintenance over time than other vehicles.
The inaugural celebration of Earth Day took place in 1970, leading to the creation of agencies such as the Environmental Protection Agency and major policies, like the Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act.
The world faces increasing challenges of climate control, thus advocates for Earth Month urge people to “go green”–which is another term for using resources accordingly. Driving electric is one way to do so.
Katie Holmes, an elementary teacher from the Hattiesburg area, says that witnessing the event was incredible.
“We thought it was cool and wanted to look at the different types [electric cars] they had,” Holmes said.
During the event, attendees could choose to test drive an electric vehicle. The faces of those getting inside the cars expressed excitement and surprise.
“We also signed up to drive the Tesla because we’ve never gotten to be in one of those before,” Holmes said.
“The point of EV Mississippi and the purpose of the event is for the public to come out and see the electric vehicles that are available,” Hazel said.
All donations and proceeds from the event will benefit Hub City Humane Society.
