Avery Sun Week #10 A New Source of Power
Avery Sun
Week 10
A New Source of Power
Automobiles, the most popular form of transportation worldwide, are one of the most powerful inventions in our age. Each day, millions, even up to a billion people use cars to quickly commute to their destinations, whether it be school, work, the grocery store, or wherever they need to be. However, cars are mainly powered by the combustion of fossil fuels, which is severely damaging to the environment and human health. According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, 29% of America’s greenhouse gas emissions come from transportation. Furthermore, vehicles release carbon monoxide, particulate matter, and nitrogen oxides, all of which are air pollutants that contribute to respiratory problems and premature death.
To account for this, electric vehicles have been growing in popularity, and several countries such as the UK, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, South Korea, and Singapore aim to ban the sale of internal combustion vehicles by 2030. The switch to electric vehicles requires a significant amount of lithium, the main material used to power electric car batteries. Just last year, lithium costs nearly quadrupled as countries realized how important this metal will become.
Currently, 92% of the lithium industry is dominated by just four countries: Argentina, Australia, Chile and China. The U.S. has one major lithium deposit in Nevada, Thacker Pass, but extraction there comes with its fair share of problems. Lithium mining requires a great deal of water, and Nevada’s dry, desert-like climate cannot exactly provide that. Mining would have to share water with agriculture, and also comes with the risk of arsenic contamination in the groundwater, cutting off the water supply for centuries. Furthermore, the location is in between two environmental hotspots, areas with a lot of biodiversity, and the mining operation is severely damaging to the environment.
Another key mineral in the production of electric cars is cobalt, which raises ethical issues. Almost all the cobalt in the world is concentrated in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the eight poorest country in the world. In Congo, major mining companies have little to no safety regulations. Many people also practice “artisanal mining,” where people illegally mine and sell cobalt, resulting in frequent child labor. In the end, “there’s almost no such thing as ethical cobalt . . . and no such thing as green lithium.”
While technology has greatly advanced in recent years and humans have achieved the power to do things unimaginable a century ago, the health of our planet has greatly deteriorated. In the case of electric cars, it seems like the solution to one problem merely leads to another. Hopefully, a solution may be found soon and may be effectively executed by world leaders.
Sources:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9dnN82DsQ2k
Hello Avery, I enjoyed reading your blog posts because it highlights a key point about our transition to electric vehicles. The thing is, there really is no way to end the world's problems completely, and when a piece of technology meant to make improve an aspect of life comes around, a lot of the times it comes at the cost of another aspect of life. In the case of electric vehicles, it cuts carbon emissions by so much, but later down the road we are going to run into another issue of the environment caused by electric cars.
ReplyDeleteWhile electric cars seem to be driving our future, their current state does have several drawbacks and issues like the ones you mentioned, Avery. I didn't even consider the ethical considerations to manufacturing electric cars, only the more direct drawbacks of producing them. For example, the rare materials and metals needed for car batteries would likely also require an immense amount of fuel to produce them. There have been discussions and arguments for a more "human-centered" structure of society, relying more so on the placement of all essential aspects of a community in short proximity to living or residential spaces, thus eliminating some of the need of cars, in contrast to our current more spread out and road-based community structure. Perhaps in the future these issues can be amended in an effective manner.
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ReplyDeleteHi Avery, your blog was really educational, and I learned a lot about the issues surrounding electrical cars and “green” transportation. First of all, I was very surprised to learn that 29% of America’s greenhouse gas emissions come from cars. I knew that transportation was a significant contributor to greenhouse gas emissions, but I definitely did not think that transportation contributed to almost a third of all greenhouse gas emissions. This makes me realize just how important promoting green transportation is. However, your blog also made me realize that the switch to electric cars is not as simple as it seems. Instead, there are many other problems and both ethical and environmental issues that come with making electrical cars. It is really sad to think that by pushing for environmentally friendly cars we might increase child labor and unethical practices in other countries. Hopefully, as innovators continue to strive for new solutions to problems like greenhouse gases, a better alternative can be found that is both beneficial for the environment and can also be created in an ethical manner.
ReplyDeleteHi Avery! The combustion of fossil fuels as the main source of energy for cars, one of the main forms of transportation worldwide, has continually affected the quality of Earth and the health of the people around the area. Although the costs of minerals such as lithium are expensive to maintain the usage of electric cars as a replacement to cars run on fuel, I think this is a spending that the government and local officials should encourage because this is essential for powering the batteries of these electric cars. On a short term perspective, the effect of cars running on fuel might not be too visible; however, the accumulation of toxic pollutants such as carbon monoxide and other nitrogen oxides can be very detrimental to the overall health of the community. Having no safety precautions or regulations in cobalt mineral mining areas is a problem that we must address as soon as possible so such a condition does not contribute to more air pollution around the world. Thank you so much for your blog and I hope to read more about the power sources of various vehicles in America!
ReplyDeleteHi Avery! Cars have certainly become an essential part of our daily lives despite their negative impact on the environment, and it's difficult to find economically responsible solutions to reduce that. I agree that electric vehicles are a step in the right direction, and that the heavy mineral demand that they present could be an issue in the foreseeable future. Perhaps a way we could reduce the labor issues associated with acquiring these materials would be finding more sustainable mining operations. Even then, we would still be placing a heavy burden on the planet's natural resources, so reducing our use of transportation would likely be something that has to be looked into.
ReplyDeleteHi Avery, your blog post is very educational and efficiently uses statistics. I agree, electric cars have become very popular. Many of my friends have teslas.The only issue is that they are quite expensive to buy, meaning that not everyone has access to electric cars. The good thing is that as we move forward, the price of electric cars will eventually decline, and I have hope that there will be new, more inexpensive solutions to helping the environment. Looking forward to your next post!
ReplyDeleteHi Avery! I’ve heard about lithium quite a bit in relation to electric cars and renewable energy. I remember thinking electric cars would help completely eliminate the environmental issues associated with cars. However it was quite sad to learn that this is not at all the case. Despite the issues that exist with electric cars, it still remains a step in reducing carbon emissions globally which I think should be the world’s first priority, especially after watching that documentary in class. I remember hearing about illegal lithium mining involving child labor being used for Tesla’s cars. It’s very disappointing to see that even our solutions have problems of their own. Hopefully one day the world can find a mode of transportation that does not produce its own problems to help save our planet. I enjoyed reading this article! I’m thinking of taking AP environmental science next year and this article was very fascinating and relevant to the topics discussed in that class.
ReplyDeleteElectric cars do seem to be an essential part of our future, with many noticeable improvements over the gas vehicles of today. However, even someone as unknowledgeable about how electrical cars work like me can see some of the problems present within using electric cars. For one, the electricity used to power the cars are not created from 100% clean energy: there is still pollution nonetheless. Additionally, the majority of car owners in the world can not afford an electric car: the upfront fee is just too high compared to most gas cars. While electric cars are superior in almost all ways, we simply do not have the technology to mass-produce electric cars at the rate and price we can produce gasoline-based cars. Hopefully, in the future we will be all using electric cars, and carbon emissions will lower.
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