Is the en masse move to EVs really good for the environment?

 

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 The move to electric vehicles from the internal combustion engine technology has been pretty much accepted as the way forward to reduce vehicular pollution all across the world, and it is no longer a question of whether, but when it will be completely accomplished. While there is no denying the fact that EVs don’t generate tailpipe emissions, concerns arise from how the electricity used to charge them is generated. If that involves generating polluting emissions, what is the point of driving around in an EV?

According to data available from the US, an average EV leads to pollution that causes global warming equal to a petrol-driven vehicle clocking a fuel efficiency of 88 miles per gallon, way better than the 58 miles per gallon performance recorded by the most efficient petrol-driven vehicles.  As a matter of fact, most people in the US (94%) live in areas where driving an EV leads to lesser emissions than caused by driving a 50 miles per gallon petrol-driven car.[1]

EVs are clearly better for the environment

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Even with the misgivings surrounding the source of electricity used to charge EVs, these are clearly a better alternative to internal combustion engine technology and hybrid technology (internal combustion cum electric) engine-using vehicles.  US Department of Energy data shows that EVs convert between 59% to 62% of their energy into actual miles driven as compared to conventional automobiles which can convert only 17% to 21% of their energy into physical miles.[2] That means that even in the case of the electric grid that supplies the power to charge EV batteries causing some polluting emissions, driving an EV is less damaging to the environment than driving an internal combustion engine-using vehicle.

As a matter of fact, the propagation of the myth that electric car emissions could actually increase carbon emissions can do massive damage to the much-needed move to the electrification of the means of transport.  There is research to show that in most scenarios electric cars generate fewer emissions even if their power is generated by using fossil fuels. Studies carried out by the Universities of Exeter, Nijmegen in The Netherlands and Cambridge, point to the fact that 95% of the world is better placed using electric cars, when it comes to safeguarding climate.[3]

Even in Australia, which majorly uses coal to generate its electricity, it has been found that driving a BEV or Battery Electric Vehicle is way less polluting than driving one with an internal combustion engine. The NRMA and PwC Australia conducted modelling which found out that an average new internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicle emits 185g CO2 per km when compared to the 98g CO@ per km emission caused by a BEV charging through the grid. With renewable energy becoming an increasingly large part of the electricity generation mix and the expected improvements in battery capacity, BEV emissions are expected to fall to 58g CO2 per km. If charged off-grid using a renewable source, the emissions fall to nought. [4]

 

Electric Vehicles- An Indian Story

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The move to electric vehicles in India gained huge impetus in 2017 when the Indian Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari set up an extremely ambitious target of 100% electrification of Indian vehicles by the end of 2030. This has since been revised to 30% for private cars, 70% for commercial vehicles, 40% for buses and 80% for two as well as three-wheelers by 2030.

India has already witnessed a veritable electric vehicle revolution albeit in the two- and three-wheel segments. This makes eminent sense, considering that buying an electric four-wheeler is beyond the means of most Indians. Priced at up to $1000 electric two-wheelers and three-wheeled seem to have partially taken over India’s chronically congested urban roads and streets.[5]

According to a recent study, India can reduce volatile organic molecules by 76% in the next seven years if it were to replace all conventionally powered two-wheeled and three-wheeled vehicles with electric ones and the diesel-powered ones with those running on CNG.[6] So clearly, electrification of vehicles can help the dire pollution situation faced by Indian cities and towns in a major way.

Like Australia, India currently generates most of its electricity by burning coal, but would still benefit by making an en masse move to electric vehicles. There is research to prove that an ambitious vehicle electrification programme even in the absence of new power sector initiatives will see a reduction in carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxides in 2030 as well as 2040. Given that the proportion of renewable sources is likely to increase in the same time period, the emission will certainly see a further fall.

Is the en masse move to EVs really good for the environment then? The answer is really a no-brainer.

 

 

 

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[1] https://www.commondreams.org/views/2020/02/14/are-electric-vehicles-really-better-climate-yes-heres-why

[2] https://evsafecharge.com/are-evs-actually-better-for-the-environment/#:~:text=The%20short%20answer%20is%20yes%2C%20electric%20vehicles%20%28EVs%29,is%20of%20course%2C%20good%20news%20for%20the%20consumer.

[3] https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-51977625

[4] https://www.mynrma.com.au/cars-and-driving/electric-vehicles/our-mission/are-evs-better-for-the-environment#:~:text=In%20conclusion%2C%20BEVs%20today%20are%20significantly%20better%20for,many%20other%20potential%20societal%20benefits%20to%20be%20realised.

[5] https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/04/business/energy-environment/india-electric-vehicles-moped-rickshaw.html#:~:text=Almost%2015%20years%20ago%2C%20Indian%20tinkerers%20and%20small,and%20established%20automakers%20looking%20to%20build%20something%20sturdier.

[6] https://www.downtoearth.org.in/news/pollution/electric-vehicles-can-lower-emissions-of-volatile-organic-compounds-in-india-by-2030-study-81488