The carbon impact of an electric car is entirely dependent on how the electricity to fuel the car was generated, but in terms of personal carbon impact the Union of Concerned Scientists found on average, electric vehicles produce about half of the emissions of a gasoline-powered car.
Carbon Footprint
Ann Michelle Espera wanted to know if her choice to buy an eclectic vehicle in 2015 has helped the environment.
“I used to drive a gas-fueled six-cylinder SUV and I’ve been curious to know, how much impact does one car make in reducing fuel emissions and greenhouse gases?” she said.
The carbon impact of an electric car is entirely dependent on how the electricity to fuel the car was generated, but in terms of personal carbon impact the Union of Concerned Scientists found on average, electric vehicles produce about half of the emissions of a gasoline-powered car.
An electric car charges at a station at Ala Moana Shopping Center in Honolulu.
While focusing on your personal carbon impact is laudable it may be misguided, according to Ben Franta, a student at Stanford Law School researching the history of fossil fuel companies, climate science and climate denial.
“This idea of framing a problem that’s caused by a particular industry’s products as the fault of individual consumers has a long and interesting history,” he said.
As early as the 1950s, internal documents show that fossil fuel companies understood that the environmental impact of their product could be a threat to their bottom line.
“They were interested in questions like how soon would climate change occur? When would people notice climate change occurring? But they didn’t have any doubt as to whether climate change would occur,” he said.
Manufacturing skepticism and debate about climate change started in earnest in the 1980s and ’90s, in direct response to regulatory threats from government.
As time went on and the science became harder and harder to dispute, many fossil fuel industries pivoted to placing the blame on the individual consumer.
Two examples that stick out to Franta include the BP oil company’s promotion of a “personal carbon footprint calculator” in 2004 and Chevron’s 2007 campaign “Will You Join Us?”
“They were framing themselves as the environmentally responsible party and consumers as the problem,” he said.
“That ad campaign encouraged consumers to do things like change their light bulbs or get a programmable thermostat while ignoring the fact that the company was actively lobbying against environmental regulation.”
Franta said this public relations tactic has also been used by automobile manufacturers who try to shift the conversation to irresponsible drivers when faced with safety regulations like airbags and seatbelts.
One-third of all carbon emissions since the industrial revolution can be traced back to the largest 90 oil, natural gas, coal, and cement producers, according to research from the Climate Accountability Institute.
The ways personal actions, like buying an electric car or going vegan, can help the climate is by signaling to large companies that they’ll lose consumer confidence if they don’t reduce emissions.
“Individual actions can be helpful as long as you keep your attention on the creators of the problem and resist industry attempts to shift the focus and the blame to individual consumers,” he said.
Originally published at Civil beat