Apr 10, 2024 2 min read

On the surface, it seems that electric vehicles are a wonderful solution to our environmental problems. Who doesn’t remember the first time you saw one, probably a Prius, glide silently along with nothing coming out of the tailpipe?

However, is the price we pay for this actually worth it? There are a number of recent reports that have made me reconsider this.

Electric cars have a fundamental problem with their enormous batteries. Not only is producing them dependent upon mining heavy metals, which grossly poisons the environment of third world communities, but it shortens the longevity and overall health of their miners, many of them children. The end product itself is difficult and very expensive to recycle, a large proportion of it ending up in landfills. It’s a lose-lose situation all around.

Because they have heavy batteries, it makes the whole vehicle 30% heavier. Why is this such a big deal? According to the March 5 edition of the New York Post, there is a “dirty little secret” about the environmental impact of this excess weight. It’s about the wear and tear this weight puts on tires and brakes, both of which wear out much more quickly than the lighter gas vehicle’s tires and brakes. The car tires that electric vehicles are using are not designed to handle the excess weight.

The Wall Street Journal has also reported that the particulate pollution from the petro based components in electric vehicles pollute the air and water 1,800 times more than their gas-powered counterparts. That is shocking because these pollutants enter the soil, the water and ultimately, the food chain.

Because of its complexity, the manufacture of an electric vehicle takes 68% more energy. Where does this energy, as well as the energy to charge the vehicle, come from? Almost 80% comes from fossil fuels.

The large-scale production of electric vehicles should be scaled back until technology for them is better developed.

Sally Brown-Pawlosky

Hickory