Electric cars are undoubtedly the vehicles of the future, but they are not the capitalist panacea that some (read: manufacturers) claim to be. But are electric cars still sustainable?

As countless manufacturers embrace electrification (some more impressive than others), we need to look at the factors that still make significant contributions to carbon emissions. Namely manufacturing, disposal and how rich countries generally consume.

A recent study has shown that the vast majority of people are unwilling to make significant lifestyle changes for the climate. While the richest 10% of humanity, a population that typically travels more than any other, are responsible for 52% of global carbon emissions. (The richest 1% is responsible for a whopping 15%.)

Then there is the automotive culture itself. The abandonment of gas will not eliminate the problems of overproduction, overconsumption and the ubiquitous wasteful values ​​of a world economy based on rapid and abundant production and the capitalist myth of inconsequential waste.

So, with that in mind, should we still go electric? We spoke with a clean transportation expert to learn about the nuances of a fully electric vehicle network and to determine if electrification really is the best and most sustainable solution to transportation emissions.

What’s the deal with electric vehicles?

Unsustainable electricity generation

Electric vehicle (EV) batteries are supplied via charging points, which draw their electricity from the grid. This means that an electric car can be more or less sustainable depending on how that energy source is produced, for example, coal against wind.

Your supplier’s degree of greening is directly reflected in the overall impact of your vehicle. This makes electric vehicles driven in predominantly renewable energy countries (like Iceland) much more sustainable than those driven in India (where fossil fuels provide 80% of the electricity).

In short, until all power generation is fossil-fuel-free, neither will transportation. But Dale Hall, a researcher for the International Council for Clean Transportation (ICCT), believes that can improve dramatically if the world globally shifts from fossil fuels.

“As we move to renewables, the difference between electric vehicles and combustion vehicles will increase,” says Hall. “There is no denying that electric vehicles emit less than gasoline or diesel vehicles over their lifetime. “

Extraction of rare earth elements

Batteries are at the heart of efficient electrification. They get better every year and allow everything from thefts to long distance cars. But it is also precisely this technology that makes the manufacturing process of EVs more resource intensive than that of traditional cars.

The longer the range of the vehicle, the larger the battery, and the larger the battery, the more rare earth elements (REE), such as lithium, cobalt, nickel and graphite, are required. These materials exist only in the earth itself and are used in everything from smartphones to televisions to electric vehicles. Rare earths are a finite resource and their recovery depends on highly polluting mining.

However, this is still paltry compared to the emissions caused by traditional combustion engines. Hall explains: “It is true that electric vehicles produce more emissions because batteries are energy intensive. However, these additional initial emissions are quickly recovered within a year or two of not using fossil fuels. “

Prohibitive cost

According to a survey by AA Cars, reported by Motor dealer, the vast majority of people buy used vehicles (almost 75 percent). Some of the most often cited reasons are prohibitive costs and rapid depreciation in value.

Meanwhile, new electric cars are usually even more expensive to reflect the (currently) smaller number and higher cost of production. Governments and the private sector must improve accessibility, availability and convenience in order to increase public adoption over the next decade.

“This problem is decreasing every year,” says Hall. “However, until then, financial incentives and / or tax cuts are important to continue to stimulate the adoption of electric vehicles in the short term so that the industry can continue to increase production. These incentives can be financed. through higher taxes on the most polluting vehicles. “

Difficult elimination

In addition to their increased cost and quick payback, modern (and especially high-tech) cars tend to break down faster than older models. They are also more difficult to repair without specialization, including for professional mechanics. Then, when they break down for good, they should be scrapped like any other vehicle, including their batteries.

Modern electric vehicle batteries are large, heavy, and made up of hundreds of individual lithium-ion cells. At the end of their life, they require disassembly, a dangerous task due to the hazardous materials contained in the batteries. While the components can be recycled, the magnitude of this potential difficulty – caused by the enormity of the industry itself – is staggering.

Despite a pandemic slump, 2020 saw a total of 78 million new motor vehicles (including 55.8 million passenger cars) produced worldwide. Meanwhile, the EU aims to have 30 million electric cars on the road by 2030. Electric vehicle batteries typically last between 10 and 20 years, which means the decade before 2050 will see less 30 million recycled batteries. In the end, “sustainable” consumption of resources at this level is impossible, even with EV technology.

“Basically the problem is that using a vehicle over 3,000 pounds to move people is inefficient and will have negative impacts,” says Hall. “This is why having fewer vehicles and switching to walking, cycling and public transport must also be an essential part of decarbonising transport. Governments should make it a priority whenever possible.

Electric vehicles are still the future

Transport, as a whole, currently generates around 30% of all greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions worldwide, and reducing emissions from road transport represents a huge challenge for the vast majority of countries with climate objectives set. And while buying a new car is impossible for much of the world’s population, a move away from fossil fuels is still necessary.

About 10 percent of a conventional car’s CO2 comes from its manufacturing, only five percent from its disposal, and 85 percent (the overwhelming majority) from fuel consumption over the life of the vehicle. Thus, although generation and disposal remain factors, ultimately combustion engine technology is the primary driver of transportation emissions.

A recent study by Jean-François Mercure (senior lecturer at the University of Exeter) and Florian Knobloch (policy adviser at the German Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy), published in Nature Sustainability, revealed that vehicles are already less carbon-intensive. intensive overall than those with combustion engines.

Even if the future electrification of end-use is not accompanied by a rapid decarbonization of the electricity sector, the study indicates that a global shift to electric vehicles will most likely reduce emissions in almost all regions. . This means that while EVs aren’t perfect (and even though a lot of our energy still comes from fossil fuels), they’re definitely better than the alternative.

“Not dealing with lifelong gasoline / diesel use is a huge economy that’s hard to beat,” says Mercury. “In about 95% of cases, electric vehicles are better or much better than combustion vehicles taking into account all sources of emissions (direct and indirect).

“Electric vehicles are the only credible means of transition”

Another study, published earlier this year by the ICCT, confirms this, concluding that even electric vehicles registered today have “by far the lowest life-cycle GHG emissions” despite the environmental cost incurred during the process. of manufacture and disposal.

“The human rights and environmental violations associated with oil production cannot be underestimated, including the destruction of indigenous lands and waters from Canada to the Amazon via Siberia,” he said. Hall said. “Electric vehicles are the only credible way to move away from fossil fuels for road transport and end the damage associated with fossil fuel extraction. “

So while automakers are directly replacing every fossil fuel-emitting vehicle (which they themselves have ever built, sold and used) with an electric car, it won’t make excess production and consumption more convenient, eliminating our Global dependence on gaseous energy through electrification is certainly a step in the right direction.