At first blush, the environmental impact of electric vehicles (EVs) can be broken into 3 categories. Without getting too deep into the many variables of each, here's a quick overview:
1) Production of the car: Possibly Polluting!
Whether you are buying a new gas-guzzling SUV or a hyper-efficient EV, there is still a tremendous environmental impact from building a new car. Think about all the different parts and materials that go in to building a complete vehicle. Solution: Consider if you really need a personal vehicle. If so, consider purchasing a used EV (unfortunately, not really an option yet) or having a used car converted into an EV. This will minimize your environmental impact and give your old car a second life!
2) Powering the car: Possibly Clean!
There is a lot of debate about the emissions associated with EVs. While EVs do not have emissions, there are emissions from the power plants that charge those EVs. Fortunately there are 3 solutions that make this less of a factor.
First, charging EVs at night reduces peak loading on power plants. Power plants are constantly producing enough energy to meet their "peak load." However this peak load occurs rarely, so that energy is unsued. Charging during off-peak periods (e.g. nights) maximizes the use of existing energy while minimizing the need for additional power generation.
Second, it is easier to regulate and clean emissions from a handful of power plants than millions of tailpipes. By shifting emission sources, we are better able to monitor and address emissions. This doesn't solve the problem - but it makes it easier to address.
Third, there is a growing movement to charge EVs with home- or business-based renewable energy systems. For example, a solar panel on the garage could be used to charge the EV. It's a simple idea that makes for an emission-free EV running on clean energy!
3) Disposing of the Battery: Possibly Clean!
Batteries for EVs can be made of a number of different materials. Lead, which is the cheapest and has the shortest charge, is what most of our current conventional car batteries use. Lead is heavy and toxic. It is estimated that 2.6 million metric tons of lead is currently "on the road" in today's cars. Even worse, 40,000 metric tons of lead are landfilled annually, and another 70,000 metric tons are released in lead mining and manufacturing.
Nickel, used in many hybrid cars, is a bit more expensive and has a longer range than lead. However, it is also a probable carcinogen and has a polluting mining/manufacturing process. The good news, though, is that some components of nickel batteries can be recycled. For example, leading hybrid car producers Toyota and Honda facilitate recycling of their batteries. Toyota claims to recycle all components. Honda recycles some materials and "neutralizes" others before landfilling them.
Lithium, the newest and most promising battery material for EVs, is expensive but has a much longer range. While there are obvious mining concerns, as with any of these materials, lithium has a much smaller environmental impact according to Jim Kliesch, ("Green Book: The Environmental Guide to Cars and Trucks"). The longer battery life means that it will be disposed of less frequently, and many materials in lithium batteries are already recyclable. Lithium batteries are currently being used in such EVs as the Tesla Roadster. You can read about their clean production and recycling program here:
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/03/tesla-electric-car-batteries-non-toxic-recycled.php
In summary, EVs have the potential to radically improve our environment and our health IF paired with cleaner energy production and advanced recycling programs.
Your thoughts?
