Author: Harley Nadler
One may question the efficacy of driving an
electric car, for the purpose of reducing a carbon footprint, when accounting
for the emissions of the car’s production as well as the emissions from the
electricity used to power it. Indeed, until auto-makers begin to use less
plastic in the car’s body and accessories, the production of the car itself leaves
a lasting mark on the earth. Nevertheless, the production of electric cars is
no worse for our environment than that of their non-electric predecessors. All
things being equal, what really determines how green a car may be is what
powers it.
To advertise a car as zero emissions may be
fundamentally misleading; even if the emissions from production are ignored. A
savvy consumer will ask where their electricity comes from before lamenting on
how sustainable their vehicle may be. Unfortunately, this has more to do with
geography than anything else. As outlined by ShrinkThatFootprint.com, countries
in which large proportions of electricity are generated by burning coal, or
other fossil fuels, may consider their electric cars to create effectively the
same amount of emissions as a gas-powered car. In other words, the same amount
of carbon is burned; in one case the carbon is burned by the car while in the
other case the carbon is burned at the coal plant.
In an ideal world, one could simply subscribe to
a choice of electric companies offering whatever means of power-generation
their customers prefer. However, the infrastructure for such a system simply
does not exist at this time. As such, we are faced with two possibilities:
1)
Resign ourselves to the fact
that we happen to live in a city where sustainable energy is not readily
available and simply drive a traditional gas-car, or
2)
Reject the notion that we are a
coal community and, instead, demand sustainable forms of power such as solar,
wind, geothermal, etc.
Obviously, one of those options is more
difficult and takes longer to invoke. However, with municipal governments
across the globe taking the lead on sustainable action, the task is not as
daunting as lobbying a federal government.
The very first step is educating yourself!! How
does your power company generate electricity? If it happens to be a healthy mix
of wind and nuclear, you can make a significant change to your carbon footprint
by upgrading to an electric vehicle (you may even have some incentives from
your government or power company available to you). However, if your power
company is using mostly coal or natural gas, your greatest impact may be a
letter to your mayor or city councilor. When issues of energy are decided at a
state or provincial level, your city officials are a strong ally in a lobby for
sustainable energy on the grid.
Harley Nadler is a 3rd year undergraduate student in the Faculty
of Education at McGill University. He holds a Diplôme d'études collégiales
(DEC) in Pure & Applied Sciences and is currently studying with the goal of
teaching science at the high school level. Harley is a big believer in
sustainability education as a means of affecting public policy.
