Can Electric Cars Really Help Tackle Climate Change?

Electric cars are essential in tackling climate change. They play a pivotal role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions from petrol and diesel cars. EVs have zero-carbon emissions when running. However, comparisons suggest that emissions in manufacturing and charging mean lifetime emissions are greater for EVs than their ICE counterparts.

This leaves many people wondering whether electric cars can actually help tackle climate change, or whether this is too good to be true. In this article, we will look at the truth behind electric vehicles to iron out these uncertainties.

What Types of Emissions are there?

When talking about vehicles, there are two types of emissions that need consideration: direct and lifecycle. Direct emissions are those that release pollutants and greenhouse gases into the air through the exhaust of the fuel car. On the other hand, lifecycle emissions are related to the production of both the vehicle and the fuel; this is more complicated to calculate.

How do Direct Emissions Compare?

When comparing the direct emissions of electric vehicles to petrol and diesel vehicles, there is a clear winner. Electric cars produce zero direct emissions as they are burning no fuel as they run. Plug-in hybrid vehicles are next in line, which have a combination of an electric motor and a gas engine. These vehicles only produce direct emissions when running on their gas tank.

Comparatively, petrol and diesel vehicles continually pump pollutants and greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Emissions depend on the make and model of the vehicle, but generally, emissions fall at around 200g CO₂ per km.

How do Lifecycle Emissions Compare?

The hot debate is whether electric vehicles produce more emissions in production and charging than petrol and diesel vehicle’s direct and lifecycle emissions combined. The emissions produced largely depends on how the battery for the EV is manufactured. As well, whether the energy made to power electric vehicles comes from renewable energy sources or not.

A recent study found that the highest lifecycle emissions for electric vehicles in Europe come from those produced in China and driven in Poland. However, even these vehicles overall emit 22% less CO₂ than diesel cars, and 28% less than petrol. Electric cars that were produced and driven in Sweden showed to have as much as an 81% improvement in emissions when compared to petrol cars.

On average, the study found that in Europe, EVs emit 3 times less CO₂ than an equivalent petrol or diesel car. Despite people’s concerns, it is clear that electric vehicles come out on top. They are the next step to a brighter future