Electric car deployment has been growing rapidly over the past ten years, with the global stock of electric passenger cars passing 5 million in 2018, an increase of 63% from the previous year. Around 45% of electric cars on the road in 2018 were in China – a total of 2.3 million – compared to 39% in 2017. In comparison, Europe accounted for 24% of the global fleet, and the United States 22%.(https://www.iea.org/reports/global-ev-outlook-2019).
In this blog we describe some of the apparent impacts of Electric Motor Vehicles on the economic and ecological fronts.
Data used in this blog have been sourced from different online resources such as:
The most striking benefit of an electric motor vehicle (EMV) is its fuel-efficiency (Figure-1) compared to a vehicle fitted with an Internal Cumbesine Engine (ICE). According to https://www.fueleconomy.gov/, by the year 2020, some of the EMVs will yield 60 Km/Ltr(equivalent) against 24 Km/ltr yield from an ICE.
This high fuel efficiency enhances both the savings on operating expenses and the conservation of non-renewable energy sources.
Figure-1: Comparison of maximum mileage offered by Gasoline vehicle (ICE) and Electric vehicle (EMV)
Exposure to outdoor air pollution has a substantial effect on health. EMVs have two folded positive impact on improving air quality around us. (1) No emission from the vehicle (2) less equivalent fuel required per kilometer.
As per the data collected from https://www.eea.europa.eu/, in European Union countries, the road transport sector emits more air pollutants and greenhouse gases compared to the energy production and distribution sector (Figure(2) &(3)).
With EVM’s less fuel equivalent requirement/ Kilometer and possible opportunities to use renewable energy sources to generate electricity, overall air quality would improve in the years to come.
Figure-2: Emission of air pollutants from energy production, road transport sectors in the European Union countries
Figure-3: Emission of greenhouse gases from energy production, road transport sectors in the European Union countries
Another remarkable benefit of EMV is that it runs on electricity..!!! This benefit unleashes the potential of a wide range of renewable energy sources to propel a motor vehicle. This could possibly reduce dependency on fossil fuels in the transport industry.
Figure (4) below shows the emerging trend in electricity production in the UK. This reveals that renewable energy sources like solar and wind are gaining more importance.
Figure-4: Energy generation by sources in the United Kingdom.
The electric motor vehicles certainly have some negative impacts on the planet. They are discussed in this section.
Increase in demand for electric storage batteries and electricity can result in increased mining activities that could result in the destruction of ecosystems (both land and sea), accelerate global warming and sea-level rise, etc.,
Below tables (Table 1,2&3) show some of the essential rare elements for the production of storage cells, solar panels and generation of electricity using nuclear power plants. Some of the elements are extremely rare on the earth’s crust, like Uranium, Thorium, Cobalt, etc., There are reports on deep-sea mining for Cobalt but no-one knows the implications.
Table 1: Rare element for the manufacturing of rechargeable batteries -Annual Production (in Tonnes) and abundance in Earth’s crust (PPM)
Table 2: Rare element for electricity generation in nuclear plants -Annual Production (in Tonnes) and abundance in Earth’s crust (PPM)
Table 3: Rare element for manufacturing of solar panels -Annual Production (in Tonnes) and abundance in Earth’s crust (PPM)
Another challenge is contingent on the source of energy used for electricity generation. The more nuclear fuel used in electricity generation, the more nuclear waste produced.
Figure 5 shows the nuclear waste accumulated by the United Kingdom until 2007 and power generated using nuclear sources. Inappropriate disposal of nuclear waste could have a catastrophic impact on the planet.
Figure-5: Nuclear waste accumulated by The United Kingdom and electricity generated from nuclear sources.
Like any technology advancement, the EMV revolution has gains and losses. However, it is important to ensure that the benefits of low emission of air pollutants and greenhouse gases won’t get offset against ecological destruction due to increased mining and nuclear waste.