Over the past decade, electric vehicles, or EVs have progressed from being an automotive niche to being a ubiquitous presence on our roads. EV sales have increased over 49.8% in Q3 2023 when compared to the same period in 2022. There is a strong and increasing desire for these vehicles and it makes sense as they offer multiple benefits when compared to their fossil-fuel counterparts. Other than the fact that they operate with net-zero emissions, they also offer great efficiency and are, by multiple accounts, more economical for the consumer due to their efficiency and inflated gas prices. Considering that the transportation sector accounts for 28% of global G.H.Gs and over 45.1% of that is from passenger vehicles, EVs are an essential step in our sustainability efforts. Yet, for us to achieve complete industry net-zero targets, mostly cited as 2050, at least 31% of all cars sold yearly must be zero-emission vehicles by next year. Additionally, the production processes of EVs are less than ideal, and need to be improved immediately.

For a vehicle to be truly sustainable, the production methods of these vehicles along with the way they can replace their currently dominant fossil-fuel counterparts should all be taken into account. Thus, Opponents of EVs have always cited the rather crude and environmentally devastating operation of lithium mining, which is vital to producing the batteries and powertrains of these vehicles. New factories are also having to be built as current factories can’t be utilized without major revamping. Additionally the question remains on how we could address all the cars that are on the road right now and the millions of gas stations that we’ve built up. Hearing all of this and taking it at face value suddenly makes EVs look terrible, but once again there is so much more than what meets the eye.

EVs can truly be revolutionary in our sustainability efforts if they are implemented correctly. In regards to the overarching issue of lithium mining, companies such as Tesla and Toyota have invested in solid-state battery technology which will help significantly reduce the carbon footprint of the batteries. It remains an issue for sure, but with enough innovation, it can be alleviated. The reason many new factories are having to be built is because they are tailored to build fossil-fuel powered vehicles which have completely different architecture and processes to build than EVs. Thus, the first step would be decreasing the demand for fossil fuel-powered cars so these factories could be converted over to EVs. The U.S, EU, and an increasing number of nations have approved subsidies for electric vehicles, helping reduce their production costs and making the vehicle more affordable for the consumer. 

In the U.S. there are multiple incentives for a car buyer to pursue an EV, charging is significantly cheaper than gas, and the government has multiple tax credits in place for driving an EV. Thus increasing these incentives would slowly but surely decrease new fossil-fuel powered vehicles. But what about the cars on the road right now? There are a few ways for us to transition properly. The primary and most viable option is to increase the availability of drop-in biofuels such as the ones that Porsche is developing in Chile and similar fuels have already been powering planes for years. Unfortunately, these fuels are tremendously expensive, and thus we need to work on bringing this “green-premium” down by increasing demand.

Thus, all told, no EVs aren’t bad, they are key to solving our climate crisis and creating more sustainable transportation. We just need to be patient, not expecting a “snap” transition to happen, methodically approaching this transition by advocating for policies and continuing to innovate as the next generation.

References:

The U.S. Department of Energy - “Correcting the record about Electric Vehicle Sales”(Nov. 3, 2023)

energy.gov/articles/correcting-record-about-electric-vehicle-sales

The U.S. Department of Energy- “Alternative Fuels Data Center”

afdc.energy.gov/vehicles/electric_basics_ev.html

afdc.energy.gov/vehicles/electric.html#:~:text=Some%20all%2Delectric%20and%20plug,and%20incentives%20in%20your%20state.

Kelly Blue Book- “Tesla EV Market shares fall by 50%” by Sean Tucker (Dec. 12, 2023)

kbb.com/car-news/tesla-ev-market-share-falls-to-50/

Kelly Blue Book- “How much does it cost to charge an electric car” by Nick Kureczewski (December 13 2023)

kbb.com/car-advice/how-much-does-it-cost-to-charge-an-ev/

Forbes-” Electric vehicle sales are surging, but net zero by 2050 means policy makers need to get into the fast lane” by Anand Gopal (Dec. 8, 2022)

forbes.com/sites/anandgopal/2022/12/08/electric-vehicle-sales-are-surging-but-net-zero-by-2050-means-policymakers-must-get-into-the-fast-lane/?sh=4bd2f5ed362e

Our World In Data- “Cars, Planes And Trains, where do CO2 emissions come from” by Hanah Ritchie (October 6, 2020)

ourworldindata.org/co2-emissions-from-transport#:~:text=This%20data%20is%20sourced%20from,comes%20from%20trucks%20carrying%20freight.

Consumers News Energy-” Discover how much money you could save with an electric vehicle”

consumersenergy.com/community/sustainability/our-hometown-stories/save-with-an-electric-vehicle#:~:text=According%20to%20a%20study%20from,for%20every%20year%20of%20driving

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency-” Sources of Greenhouse gas emissions”

epa.gov/ghgemissions/sources-greenhouse-gas-emissions#:~:text=Transportation%20

Euro News- “South America’s lithium fields reveal the dark side of our electric future” (2/1/2022)

euronews.com/green/2022/02/01/south-america-s-lithium-fields-reveal-the-dark-side-of-our-electric-future

The Washington Post- “Tossed aside in the ‘white gold’ Rush” by Todd C.Frankel and Peter Whoriskey (Dec. 16, 2016)

washingtonpost.com/graphics/business/batteries/tossed-aside-in-the-lithium-rush/

The Wall Street Journal- “Shift to EVs Triggers Biggest Auto Factory Boom in decades” by Nora Eckert (Jan.1, 2023)

wsj.com/articles/shift-to-evs-triggers-biggest-auto-factory-building-boom-in-decades-11672503095

Transport and Environment- “Solid State Batteries can further boost climate benefits of EVs” (July 19 2022)

transportenvironment.org/discover/solid-state-batteries-can-further-boost-climate-benefits-of-evs-study/

Torque News-” Tesla and Toyota make the leap to LFP solid state batteries”

torquenews.com/8113/tesla-and-toyotas-leap-lfp-solid-state-revolution-ev-batterie

Bloomberg- “America’s factory boom brings billion dollar industries to tiny towns” by Michael Sasso and Mark Niquette (October 5 2023)

bloomberg.com/news/features/2023-10-05/ev-factory-investment-brings-changes-to-american-small-towns?embedded-checkout=true

Porsche- “eFuels pilot plant in Chile finally opened” (Dec. 12 2022)

newsroom.porsche.com/en/2022/company/porsche-highly-innovative-fuels-hif-opening-efuels-pilot-plant-haru-oni-chile-synthetic-fuels-30732.html

Satander-”The green premium and why it matters to the economy” (June 19 2023)

santander.com/en/stories/green-premium#:~:text=It%20was%20Bill%20Gates%20who,net%20zero%20emissions%20by%202050.