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Why EVs Aren't a Climate Change Panacea

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Nevertheless, for EVs themselves to become true zero emission vehicles, everything in their supply chain from mining to electricity production must be nearly net-zero emission as well. In states (or countries ) with a high proportion of coal-generated electricity, the miles needed to break-even climb more.

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EPA GHG Inventory shows US GHG down 1.7% y-o-y in 2019, down 13% from 2005

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This decrease was driven largely by a decrease in emissions from fossil fuel combustion resulting from a decrease in total energy use in 2019 compared to 2018 and a continued shift from coal to natural gas and renewables in the electric power sector. CO 2 emissions decreased 2.2% from 2018 to 2019.

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Canada’s First Ministers release Pan-Canadian Framework on Clean Growth and Climate Change

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Canada’s First Ministers (The Prime Minister of Canada and the provincial and territorial premiers) issued a joint communiqué and released the Pan-Canadian Framework on Clean Growth and Climate Change following the First Ministers’ Meeting. The Framework outlines actions that will grow the economy while reducing GHG emissions.

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IEA: governments must act to ensure sufficient supply of critical minerals to meet net-zero goals

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Demand outlooks and supply vulnerabilities vary widely by mineral, but the energy sector’s overall needs for critical minerals could increase by as much as six times by 2040, depending on how rapidly governments act to reduce emissions. However, in climate-driven scenarios, these positions are reversed well before 2040. Source: IEA.

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IEA: global CO2 emissions rebounded to their highest level in history in 2021; largely driven by China

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billion tonnes, their highest ever level, as the world economy rebounded strongly from the COVID-19 crisis and relied heavily on coal to power that growth, according to new IEA analysis. Coal accounted for over 40% of the overall growth in global CO 2 emissions in 2021, reaching an all-time high of 15.3 billion tonnes.

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Study projects thermoelectric power in Europe and US vulnerable to climate change due to lower summer river flows and higher river water temperatures

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Projected changes in summer mean usable capacity of power plants in the US and Europe for the SRES A2 emissions scenario for the 2040s (2031–2060) relative to the control period (1971–2000). A study published in Nature Climate Change suggests that thermoelectric power plants (i.e., Source: van Vliet et al. Click to enlarge.

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MIT researchers conclude fundamental changes in the US energy-innovation system are needed to meet challenges of climate change and energy supply

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Without systematic, transformative changes, the US is unlikely to succeed either in averting the worst economic and environmental consequences of climate change or in achieving a secure, affordable and reliable energy supply. Broad public support for bold action does not exist in the United States. —Richard Lester.