What’s the deal with electric cars?
Many nations and governments have been looking for ways to reach the climate change goals set by the 2015 Paris Agreement. One of these goals include decreasing the amount of global greenhouse gas emissions to limit the increase in global temperatures.
A major contributor of greenhouse gases is the transportation sector. In the U.S., the transportation sector, largely comprised of passenger vehicles, accounts for 27% of national greenhouse gas emissions as of 2020. The majority of passenger vehicles used by Americans run on gasoline. These conventional vehicles that use an internal combustion engine emit greenhouse gas emissions directly from the tailpipe.
In efforts to combat the modern combustion vehicle, there has been a wave of electric vehicles. These vehicles are claimed to release less greenhouse gas emissions than combustion vehicles. Therefore, in order to reach climate change goals, many car manufacturers have released statements communicating their intent to have all electric vehicles by a certain date. Improvements in technology and research and development have also played a role in the growth of the electric vehicle industry by improving battery life and decreasing costs.
All-electric vehicles release zero greenhouse gas emissions from their tailpipe, since they run on electricity.
However, electric and hybrid vehicles have various consequences and implications.
When evaluating the environmental implications of electric vehicles, it is important to consider the source of electricity and raw materials used to manufacture and power these vehicles.
The average electrical grid in the U.S. includes a mix of natural gases and renewable energy sources. In this case, electric vehicles are more environmentally friendly than conventional vehicles that combust natural gases. However, if the electric vehicle is being charged on a power grid heavily reliant on coal, the vehicle may have a similar carbon footprint to a hybrid vehicle.
Therefore, a power grid’s source of energy affects the “greenness” of electric vehicles.
Furthermore, ethical and environmental concerns have been raised over the extraction of raw materials used to manufacture electric vehicles.
The extraction of cobalt, used to make the batteries for electric vehicles, has raised several concerns. Extraction of cobalt can leave behind harmful materials called tailings. The smelting of cobalt can also result in hazardous slag. These mining procedures harmed the environment and has raised numerous human rights concerns. Many of the workers are children that are threatened by the working conditions and environmental impacts.
In conclusion, there are many factors to consider when evaluating the environmental impact of electric vehicles. There is still progress to be made on the development and manufacturing of electric vehicles and cleaning up electric grids.
Very interesting article! I have always heard about electric vehicles about a potential alternative for the future of green energy – I even had to do some research myself last semester about EVs for Chemistry 110. The graph & statistic you provided did a good job of displaying important emissions data to your audience, and overall I look forward to reading your upcoming posts about environmental topics!
The environment is something we need to heavily focus on at the moment in order to ensure further possible life on earth. This is the first time I’ve actually read about the harmfulness of electric vehicles. Even though they might not release greenhouse gases, they still have a negative effect on our environment in another way. Sometimes though, we have to settle for the lesser evil, and this might be the one. I love the graph you provided as well. I love learning about the environment and can’t wait to read more about it in your next post!
Rocky,
Great work on this civic issues blog. I think the idea of energy and the environment is a very current topic that needs to have more focus, so I look forward to reading some more of your future posts. I think you handled this topic so eloquently by providing clear facts to support your points. I took a class last semester, EGEE (Energy and the Environment), which is very similar to this topic so I would definitely recommend taking this if you are interested in such topics. Prior to last semester, I assumed these electric vehicles were so much better than gas-powered ones until I learned the idea of power source. The line from your blog, “However, if the electric vehicle is being charged on a power grid heavily reliant on coal, the vehicle may have a similar carbon footprint to a hybrid vehicle”, perfectly encompasses this idea and is something more individuals should know about. Overall, way to choose a current issue and bring a new light to it. Great work!
You bring up many interesting points, such as how electric vehicles may be better for the environment, but are still not perfect. The fact that children are the ones working to extract the raw materials needed is definitely concerning. I think everyone should work towards decreasing the worlds reliance on cars as a whole, and we should work towards more walkable cities and better public transportation.