Even though i electric vehicles they produce no emissions, many detractors argue that they are not as green as they appear when charged with electricity generated by burning fossil fuels. But new research shows that this is not always the case.
According to an article published in the magazine Nature Sustainability, a group of researchers from Holland and England found that the electric car charged by coal-fired power plants however, they produce less overall emissions than vehicles with an internal combustion engine.
For researchers, this principle is valid in 95% of cases.
According to research, over their lifetime, electric cars produce 70% fewer emissions than gasoline cars in countries where most electricity comes from renewable sources. In Italy this percentage is around 30%. As more countries move to renewable energy, the situation will only improve.
Only in countries where national grids are almost exclusively powered by oil and coal, such as Estonia, India and Poland, is it worse for the environment to drive an electric vehicle.
Australia, for example, produces similar levels of emissions to Poland. Alas, the abundance of coal mines has done enormous damage. Since the automotive market has a larger share of large vehicles, though, even there a shift to electric vehicles would have a major impact in reducing overall emissions in the country.
Even though it is incredibly resource-intensive to produce batteries, over its lifetime the electric car produces far fewer emissions than combustion vehicles.
“The idea that electric vehicles can increase emissions is essentially a hoax” he said Florian Knobloch, lead author of the research and environmental scientist at Radboud University.
Somehow, we've known for a while: the electric car is much better.
Many detractors also argue that due to the amount of resources used to produce batteries, if you look at the total cycle of a car the electric one is ultimately worse for the environment. Another hoax. A specific study found already in 2015 that electric cars are far better for the environment.
According to the research, a typical EV compensates for the emissions generated by its production within 16 months of ownership.
Putting that research and this more recent one together, in short, it is clear that even if that electric vehicle is powered by electricity generated by coal, it is still more ecological.
