Electric cars
pence a day. 24 The conditions can become particularly demanding for miners when experiencing torrential downpours in hand-dug tunnels which can collapse. Also, only having access to water rich in harmful minerals from the mining site, some miners have fallen ill and died, 25 while others, exposed to excavation dust containing dangerous metals such as uranium, have suffered respiratory diseases and birth defects. 26 In many sites containing sulphur minerals, acid drainage can occur where these minerals are combined with air and water to produce sulfuric acid. Acid drainage can pollute aquatic ecosystems such as rivers and streams and have effects which can last for centuries. Both cobalt and lithium have severe issues both environmentally and ethically: it is a genuine, government-dividing dilemma as to whether it is environmentally viable to continue the mining of these metals. However, alternatives have been developed, the most recent – making EV batteries with cobalt-free cathodes – announced in Tesla’s 2020 Battery Day event. Despite the expense of such batteries, Tesla now say that they can make a $25,000 (around £18,000) EV which is $10,000 (around £7,250) cheaper than their current cheapest model. 27 The cobalt is being replaced with a high-nickel cathode; it is the mining of nickel which Elon Musk has pushed for when ‘ speaking with the CEOs of the biggest mining company ’ (also at the Battery Day event). 28 As expected, nickel mining also comes with some environmental issues. Predominately mined in Australia, Canada, Russia and the Philippines, the mining causes clouds of sulphur dioxide to suffocate the atmosphere and pollute the land. 29 We must acknowledge that the mining of both cobalt and nickel is harmful to the environment. In regard to CO 2 emissions, EVs on average produced 8-10 metric tonnes of CO 2 per vehicle. However, depending on the size of the battery, this can be as little as 2 metric tonnes for a small Nissan Leaf and as high as 17 metric tonnes for a larger EV, such as a long-range Tesla Model S. This is in comparison to the average ICE producing 7 metric tonnes of CO 2 . 30 This is mainly due to the polluting machinery used in the mining operations for components of EV batteries. Moreover, the efficiency of the typical ICE manufacturing process and assembly line has been one which has been perfected over the last 150 years. ICE vehicles have an average production of 5.2 metric tonnes of CO 2 per annum if driving the average of 11,800 miles; over the lifespan of the car it is responsible for 57 metric tonnes of CO 2 . 31 Opposed to EVs producing under half this, at 28 metric tonnes in the same time frame, and despite EVs producing zero CO 2 emissions while running, when taking into account emission from electric powerplants, an EV is responsible for 2 metric tonnes per annum and so after 6 months to 2 years the EV will prove the more environmentally friendly option. Even when comparing the worst EV, such as the Porsche Taycan Turbo S. to one of the greenest ICE vehicles such as the Mitsubishi Space Star, after around 7.5 years the ICE vehicle emissions would overtake the EV’s. 32
24 Shy News 2017. 25 Ibid. 26 United Nations Conference on Trade and Development 2020. 27 Calma 2020. 28 Ibid. 29 Opray 2017. 30 Donut Media 2020. 31 Ibid. 32 Climobil 2019.
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