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Another important limitation in the article that is not mentioned is that how 'green' electric cars are isn't determined by the engine, it's determined by the e

Another important limitation in the article that is not mentioned is that how 'green' electric cars are isn't determined by the engine, it's determined by the energy input. The lifetime emissions of an electric vehicle are still about ~70% of a conventional one in most countries. Accelerating electrification when all you've done is move the resource consumption from the car to a conventional power plant isn't really that helpful.

latortuga 5y ago
A 30% emissions reduction is amazing, why would you use that argument? Gas engines will always use gas while electric motors can use any kind of electricity. Transferring generation from car to power plant is a fantastic plan. Economies of scale kick in and it allows you to aggressively invest in cleaner tech which causes a virtuous price cycle.
- Barrin92 5y ago
  >why would you use that argument? Because dynamics like the Jevon's paradox exist. Marginal efficiency or sustainability improvements generally just lead to increased consumer demand. This is exactly the dynamic of the traditional car engine. It's why despite the fact that green energy output has increased by several magnitudes in terms of production, globally we've only lowered carbon dependency by marginal amounts. Gains are being eaten by increased consumption. In fact this applies even to green energy infrastructure itself which often needs to run for a long time to pay for its own construction. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jevons_paradox#Energy_conservation_policy https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jevons_paradox#Energy_conserva...
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tonmoy 5y ago
We should not just switch to EV and keep everything same. The power generation needs to switch over to more renewables or probably nuclear at the same time if we want to reach zero carbon soon. However if we don’t switch to EVs then there is no other way for us to cut the carbon from transportation. We can’t wait for the magical carbon free transport that may come in 20 years and just keep using ICEs in the meantime

latortuga 5y ago

A 30% emissions reduction is amazing, why would you use that argument? Gas engines will always use gas while electric motors can use any kind of electricity. Transferring generation from car to power plant is a fantastic plan. Economies of scale kick in and it allows you to aggressively invest in cleaner tech which causes a virtuous price cycle.

Barrin92 5y ago
>why would you use that argument? Because dynamics like the Jevon's paradox exist. Marginal efficiency or sustainability improvements generally just lead to increased consumer demand. This is exactly the dynamic of the traditional car engine. It's why despite the fact that green energy output has increased by several magnitudes in terms of production, globally we've only lowered carbon dependency by marginal amounts. Gains are being eaten by increased consumption. In fact this applies even to green energy infrastructure itself which often needs to run for a long time to pay for its own construction. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jevons_paradox#Energy_conservation_policy https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jevons_paradox#Energy_conserva...

deleted 5y ago

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tonmoy 5y ago

We should not just switch to EV and keep everything same. The power generation needs to switch over to more renewables or probably nuclear at the same time if we want to reach zero carbon soon. However if we don’t switch to EVs then there is no other way for us to cut the carbon from transportation. We can’t wait for the magical carbon free transport that may come in 20 years and just keep using ICEs in the meantime