ELECTRIC CARS - LET'S GET DOWN TO BUSINESS

MONTREAL, Quebec, October 25, 2019 - Wanting to dispel doubts and rumors about the electric car once and for all, here's a summary of the facts admitted by all experts in transportation electrification.

HOW IS ELECTRICITY GENERATED IN NORTH AMERICA?

It comes from a variety of sources: some coal, some gas, some hydroelectricity, some nuclear, some wind and some solar. However, as time goes by, our energy production base is becoming greener and greener.

Among our immediate neighbors, for example, New York State has cut its greenhouse gas emissions from electricity generation by 54% since the 1990s. Ontario's have fallen by 87%. Even Alberta and Saskatchewan want to green their electricity production and close their coal-fired power plants by 2030.

As for Quebec, as everyone knows, we're blessed with hydroelectricity. The transition to electric vehicles is not only good for our environment, it's also good for our economy. More than half a billion dollars leave the province every month to supply our cars and trucks with oil.

THE FAMOUS ECOLOGICAL FOOTPRINT

It's true to say that an electric car has a larger ecological footprint when it leaves the factory, mainly due to the manufacture of its battery.

However, the biggest source of pollution from a vehicle is not when it's manufactured, but when it's in use.

If we look at the entire life cycle of a vehicle, we see that an electric or plug-in hybrid vehicle has a smaller ecological footprint, regardless of the Canadian province or American state in which it will be used.

TIME FAVORS ELECTRIC VEHICLES

Just as electricity production in North America is becoming greener, so oil production is becoming more polluting. Just two decades ago, Quebecers consumed mainly conventional oil, whereas today they consume more and more shale oil (USA) and oil from tar sands (Alberta). For every barrel produced, this oil emits more greenhouse gases and polluting emissions than conventional oil.

RESOURCE DEPLETION

As combustion-powered vehicles are replaced by electric ones, we need to be vigilant when it comes to exploiting resources such as lithium. Efficient recycling will need to be implemented on a large scale. Already, however, Li-ion battery recycling pilot projects with material recovery rates approaching 95% are being announced, such as the Quebec-based Lithion consortium.

By maintaining the right balance in battery format and recycling, there will be no problem of lithium depletion.

As for rare earths, it's important to know that they're found in both gasoline-powered and electric cars, as these metals are used to manufacture the cars' various motor-generators (alternator, starter motor, cooling system pump, windscreen wipers, window regulators, electric adjustable seats). Ironically, 26% of the rare earths used worldwide are used as catalysts in the petroleum industry and in the catalytic converters of internal combustion engine cars!

What's more, not all manufacturers use rare earths in wheel motors. It's not essential. Some don't use them at all. And no, there's no rare earth in electric vehicle batteries!

HEALTH AND AIR POLLUTION: A KEY ISSUE

In Quebec, road transport is the biggest source of pollution in our cities. Premature mortality due to pollution in Canada is estimated at between 14,000 and 21,000 deaths annually (Health Canada and Canadian Medical Association).

The CanCHEC study showed that mortality increases by 15-25% for people living within 50 metres of a busy road. The International Institute for Sustainable Development (Winnipeg) has estimated that health and disability costs due to air pollution in Canada total $36 billion annually. Expenses and suffering that would not exist in the absence of pollution.

The day when most cars, buses and trucks run on electricity, the air we breathe in our cities will be much cleaner. Noise, a source of stress, will be greatly reduced.

And, last but not least, vehicle braking. Brake shoes and pads disperse fine particles into the air, which are harmful to health. With electric vehicles, these emissions will be reduced by at least 80%, as it is mainly the electric motor that slows and stops the car. Conventional brakes are hardly used at all.

The experience of an all-electric city like Zermatt, Switzerland, allows us to enjoy an alpine air in the middle of the city. Something to be wished for our city centers. A corollary of Swiss air quality: the lowest cardiovascular mortality rate in the world!

The energy transition is well and truly underway. It's ridiculous to try and slow it down, and we have everything to gain by embracing it with enthusiasm.

SOURCE : LA PRESSE + (http://plus.lapresse.ca/screens/0a668932-20dc-4241-9f49-6ef892746886__7C___0.html?)