On a global scale, transportation accounts for about 64 percent of oil consumption, 27 percent of all energy use, and 23 percent of the world’s energy related carbon dioxide emissions.
In recent years, electric cars have seen an increase in popularity as a cleaner alternative to gas-powered cars and as a way to combat climate change. However, this introduces the question of whether electric cars are really a cleaner alternative to gas-powered cars.
While electric vehicles can be considered better for the environment because they don’t emit carbon dioxide from exhaust fumes, they aren’t 100 percent ‘green’ either. The fact that a majority of the United States power grid is still powered by fossil fuels, as well as the environmental toll from battery production, are keeping electrical cars from being ‘green.’
In the United States, electrical power plants are still largely coal powered. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, 60 percent of electricity generation is powered by fossil fuels, which is the same fuel source for traditional gas powered cars. Electric cars can’t be considered the cleaner option if they are still using the same fuel source as gas powered cars.
Another issue with electric cars is the carbon dioxide emissions during the production process. A “Vehicle Whole Life analysis” goes over how electric vehicles emit more CO2 in production than a standard gasoline vehicle. During the manufacturing of an electric vehicle, there are 8.8 tons of carbon dioxide emitted compared to 5.6 tons for a standard gasoline vehicle and 6.5 tons for hybrid vehicles.
The CO2 emissions during the production process can be largely attributed to the metals used in the batteries. These metals, such as cobalt, lithium, and nickel, all entail a mining process that can take an extreme toll on the environment.
“Like many other batteries, the lithium-ion cells that power most electric vehicles rely on raw materials … that have been linked to grave environmental and human rights concerns,” New York Times said.
Cobalt is considered especially problematic due to its environmental impact. The mining process produces hazardous waste that can run off into the surrounding environment. The extraction of the ore can also emit sulfur oxide, which contributes to harmful air pollution.
There are also ethical and humanitarian concerns, as a majority of the world’s cobalt is located in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The mines are largely unregulated, and workers use hand tools that cause them to be constantly exposed to the metal, which can cause serious health effects. According to the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, exposure to cobalt can cause harm to the eyes, skin, heart, and lungs as well as potentially cause cancer.
The extraction of lithium, a common metal used in the batteries of electric cars, has serious environmental repercussions like soil degradation, water shortages, biodiversity loss, and damage to ecosystem functions.
“When we think of extraction, we think of fossil fuels like coal and gas,” euronews.green said. “Unfortunately, lithium also falls under the same umbrella, despite paving the way for an electric future. Lithium can be described as the non-renewable mineral that makes renewable energy possible – often touted as the next oil.”
Lithium is found in the salt flats in South America. These areas are generally arid, and water is already scarce. Lithium mining restricts the amount of water available to local communities.
“In Chile’s Atacama salt flats, mining consumes, contaminates, and diverts scarce water resources away from local communities,” euronews.green said. “The production of lithium through evaporation ponds uses a lot of water … approximately 2.2 million liters of water is needed to produce one ton of lithium.”
Another metal used in the production of electric car batteries is nickel. According to the International Energy Forum, nickel is used in the cathodes of lithium-ion batteries to help improve the performance of electric vehicles, especially their range.
Nickel mining is harmful to the environment, particularly with how there is considerable water pollution near nickel mines. Heavy metals contaminate waterways, causing harm to aquatic life as well public health.
Electric cars can’t be considered a cleaner option for the environment since they are still powered by fossil fuels and the extraction of the metals needed for their batteries has harmful environmental effects. More sustainable transportation comes from improving city infrastructure to make it more bike and pedestrian friendly, such as city-wide bike shares, ride sharing, and improving public transportation.
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References:
https://www.iisd.org/articles/deep-dive/road-sustainable-transport
