Synthesizing Common Ground
When comparing the two articles by Vanessa Brown Calder and BobbyMagill to each other, they seem to have a similar standpoint on the electric
car issue. According to the NationalReview article, Tesla electric car company is only showing the positive
side of their vehicle’s environmental impact. The Climate Central article uses the Nissan leaf to make the same point.
The major conclusion that both authors agree upon is that the use of fossil
fuels to create the electricity for these vehicles produces more carbon
emissions that conventional, gas-burning vehicles. Magill does state that if
the electricity was derived from wind or solar sources, it could cut down
pollution by as much as 50%. Calder, in contrast, seems to acknowledge the pros
of development in electric cars, but seems to focus on government spending and
environmental impacts of electric vehicles currently. One discrepancy that
bothers me is Calder stating that electric vehicle emissions are 68% higher
than that of conventional vehicles and Magill says as much as 80%. This makes
me start to wonder what circumstantial variations caused these discrepancies
and how the carbon footprint of burning coal is being measured accurately.
Broken down by the mile, the carbon footprint of electric cars is 15 ounces of carbon/mile and gas is only 12/mile, according to Calder. The electricity we are trying to implement for our new vehicles almost seems like an excuse to hide carbon we are burning. I can see the emissions coming out of my gas-powered car when I am driving it or when it is running. On a Tesla, I can’t see any carbon being emitted, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t there. The coal plants put the carbon footprint of electric vehicles in plain sight.With so many people dying from air pollution a day, obviously, something needs to be done. It seems to me as though the transition to electric cars should have been preceded by utilizing renewable resources, such as wind or solar, to produce the electricity. Technology seems to be on the right track, but we’re doing things in the wrong order. Electric cars seem to be more of a trend at this point than a solution. As I dive deeper into this blog, my focus will veer away from electric cars and directly into renewable energy and what economic issues are causing us to still utilize coal as a primary energy-production source.The major questions I have at this point are: What is the government spending on fossil fuel energy production? What is the cost to transition electricity production from coal to the wind and solar sources?
Samuel,
ReplyDeleteI liked your post! I think you did a great job at showing the costs and benefits of switching over to renewable energy as a country and for individuals. I actually didn’t know that renewable energy is proven to create more jobs than the fossil fuel industries, that’s amazing. I’m glad you mentioned at the end of your article that you think we should focus on a job replacement program for the transition. I completely agree with you, people shouldn’t be left behind in this step forward to the planet. I’m glad you talked about the personal cost of switching to electric, there are sure a lot of pros and cons. It really is expensive to switch over, and the cost is just unrealistic for most people. You mentioned a bit about tax incentives for companies, I was wondering how you feel about the Obama-era tax incentives for electric and fuel efficient vehicles. These are obviously only realistic to those who can afford to pay for such an expensive vehicle up front, so a smaller portion of Americans, but I think it was a good start. Moving forward, I would like to know about what people can do on a smaller lever with their cars, homes, etc., and what the personal cost for them would be. Once again, I think you did a good job on this post and am looking forward to you next.
Hi, Sam,
ReplyDeleteI was impressed by your post and I wonder that, in fact, electric cars are not as eco-friendly as they were supposed to be, and pollution from burning coal more than from gasoline. Why do people increases the production of electric cars? Why did not designers think through this dilemma? Does the production of gasoline pollute the environment even more? I agree with you that a solution must be found and this is an important problem of the modern world. Because our main natural resources are clean air and clean water; without them humanity cannot exist.
Hey Sam,
ReplyDeleteI think it's pretty wild that electric cars burn more carbon per mile than gas cars. I think this could be a big problem for electric car companies if this word got out more. IT is also pretty interesting to see how we are being misled with these electric cars. This leads me to question why word has not really gotten out? This also leads me to wonder if it is possible to run solar cars? I would agree with the fact that we should be thinking about how to create wind energy before we worry about carbon.
I enjoyed reading your post I have learned a lot that I was not aware of I always thought electric cars were the better option guess that's what I get for not doing my research. I agree that something needs to be done it is a serious issue and I think a lot of people don't understand how important it is. I like that you brought up if smartcars are worse for our environment and the cost to transition from wind and solar sources.
ReplyDelete