The real environmental cost of EVs
Вставка
- Опубліковано 4 лип 2023
- This week, The Tech Effect crew (ft. Tausif Hussain) delves into what goes into making EVs and whether they’re better for the environment compared to gas cars.
Subscribe: goo.gl/5LeI3M
Follow us on Twitter: / mobilesyrup
Follow us on Instagram: / mobilesyrup
Follow us on Facebook: / mobilesyrup
Check out more: www.MobileSyrup.com - Наука та технологія
Best long term solution would be to have short-range EVs for those who only travel within cities, and then hybrid gasoline-electric cars for long travels. Hybrids have gotten really efficient these days, and uses the best characteristics of gas and electric. I just don't believe corporations will use the green mining methods to mine batteries, they'll just use whatever's cheapest and grease the palms of politicians to look the other way because they'll gladly eat a $1M fine to make $10M at the cost of the world while pretending to be green. Same feelings with battery recycling, I've seen so many electric vapes disposed in gutters and watched Rich Rebuilds struggle to refurbish a Tesla battery because they make it so hard to fix, causing insurance companies to just total EVs that have minor, otherwise-fixable damage. Plus, this doesn't address the problem that our electrical grid in North America can't even handle 40% of the population switching to electric vehicles charging at home, and we can't exactly double our energy output without massive costs incurred. Makes me concerned Biden said he wanted only electric cars by 2035 if we don't have solid, stable solutions to the problems listed here and in the video. Especially in Canada, where cold weather impacts battery range heavily.
This is an interesting perspective! We know a lot of people that drive hybrids and they're very happy with them.
Great vid guys!
Thanks for watching!
Great video! With the domestic supply chain expanding, there will be a point that EVs will match or become lower than a traditional ICE vehicle, especially if manufacturers start adding renewables to their factories. You will still have emissions (mining isn't free), but overall, this is the best approach. Of course, the ultimate goal is to reduce reliance on personal vehicles altogether, but that's for another time :)
Very well put! Have you made the change to an EV yet?
@@mobilesyrup yes! I've been driving an EV for the last 6 years :)
Added emissions to build more power plants? Even if they are green when running, takes a lot to build these
Definitely want to make the jump to an EV but waiting for a good, affordable option.
That sounds like a solid strategy to us! They're still so incredibly expensive.
What’s the environmental impact on breaking down the batteries after they’ve reached their life cycle??? I don’t know if that was answered.
The batteries will be recycled, like existing 12V car batteries. Generally they have a decades-long lifespan, as they can be rotated into power storage solutions and connected to the grid to live out their remaining useful life. The grid is a different type of power demand than EVs are, so the batteries do quite well there.
Recycling batteries does involve some toxic chemicals that require management, so similar impact to other industries managing such waste. However, several companies are exploring alternate methods of recovering the metals from the batteries that don't use the chemicals to dissolve and separate, so we'll see how that develops.
What I love about the EV industry is battery (and motor) technology is constantly being researched, developed, and improved. With gasoline, it's been pretty much the same since Spindletop. Once you burn the gas, it's gone. EV power sources are infinitely recyclable (the metals), and constantly improving.
We don't really have a clear answer to that yet, unfortunately. Hopefully, battery recycling companies are able to adequately reuse materials.
So expensive tho. Every Plug-in hybrid, hybrid or full ev are pretty expensive…
We hear that. There needs to be an EV in the $20,000 - $30,000 range.
@@mobilesyrupeven gas powered cars in that range are getting rare in NA
👀
👀
EV's are a solution to one problem; gasoline/diesel consumption. They, like petro-cars, have an impact on the environment in their production and support, and EV's can clog a road no different than petro-cars in a traffic jam. EV's *with* a change to driving habits can make the biggest impact. Cut down on discretionary driving.
Save the world, ride a bike 🚴♀.
Everything humans do has an impact on the environment. EVs will reduce that impact. And ongoing efforts to convert ships and planes to electric (or hydrogen) will be a force multiplier in impact reduction.
@@MattVanecek yes, absolutely. But its also on us, the end user, to rethink our behaviors too.
And look at Redwood Materials, and several others in the USA. There are a couple out there that are developing sustainable methods for recycling, too, which is a hard thing. Also, we recycle almost 100% of 12V car batteries; in the USA, we have to either turn in the old battery or pay a fee, when replacing that one. We *should* be able to do the same with EV batteries.
Also consider that additional battery technologies are rapidly advancing, such as LFP and sodium batteries, where Chinese CATL is far out-doing the rest of the world.
You mention the impact of extracting and transporting lithium and other metals. I wish more of you pundits on this topic would stop skipping over the impact of extracting, transporting, and spilling fossil fuels. Reportedly you can still dig into the beaches of Prince William Sound and encounter the sludge from the Valdez. And the Gulf of Mexico will be suffering from the impact of the Deepwater Horizon disaster for decades. And several river deltas along the African coast being soaked in oil (but it's Africa so nobody cares?).
No matter what, humans *will* be extracting something from Earth, which will leave marks. But with EVs, we have opportunity to dramatically shift that balance, especially with the burgeoning recycling industry and the constant development of newer and better battery technologies. The future is bright for EVs.
Thanks for the insight! We'll look into those companies if we create a follow-up video.