so much for those smelly poisonous fumes, just came across this.
talk about controlling the narrative
Electric vehicles ‘worse for environment than petrol cars’, study finds
Electric vehicles release more toxic particles into the atmosphere and are worse for the environment than their petrol-powered counterparts, according to a resurfaced study.
The study, published by emissions data firm Emission Analytics, was released in 2022 but has attracted a wave of attention this week after being cited in a Wall Street Journal op-ed Sunday.
It found that brakes and tyres on EVs release 1850 times more particle pollution compared to modern tailpipes, which have “efficient” exhaust filters, bringing gas-powered vehicles’ emissions to new lows.
Today, most vehicle-related pollution comes from tyre wear.
As heavy cars drive on light-duty tyres — most often made with synthetic rubber made from crude oil and other fillers and additives — they deteriorate and release harmful chemicals into the air, according to Emission Analytics.
Because EVs are on average 30 per cent heavier, brakes and tyres on the battery-powered cars wear out faster than on standard cars.
Emission Analytics found that tyre wear emissions on half a metric tonne of battery weight in an EV are more than 400 times as great as direct exhaust particulate emissions.
For reference, half a metric tonne is equivalent to roughly 1500kg. The most popular EV in the US, Tesla’s Model Y, boasts a lithium-ion battery that weighs in at a hefty 800kg.
The study throws doubt on the practicality of the Biden administration’s EV mandates, which tout electric cars as “zero-emissions vehicles” in a quest to force two-thirds of new cars in America to be all-electric by the year 2032.
California politicians have similarly referred to EVs as producing “zero emissions” because they don’t have tailpipes, per the Journal, which added that the label is “deceptive.”
But you have this downside of EVs that increases particle pollution. Air pollution is about what we breathe and the health effects,” Molden said, assuring that the toxins in tyres have much less impact on climate change than they do on “what we eat and are ingesting.”
Increased exposure to these toxins “can increase the risk of health problems like heart disease, asthma, and low birth weight,” according to the New York Department of Health, which noted that pollution from sources including vehicle exhaust can travel long distances from its source and still cause health issues at unhealthy levels.
California’s air agency used a model that assumes electric and gas vehicles have the same amount of tyre wear when analysing the effects of the ban, according to the Journal.
The public was quick to note the error, but the agency doubled down on its stance, saying it’s “speculative” to assume electric cars will always be heavier than their gasoline counterparts.
(20min delay)