Matt Gillian, Oct. 28, 20,21: Matt charges up an electric ChevroletVolt. It is one of the cars used by his nonprofit Inspiration Transportation. This service provides transportation for people living in rural areas who are often unable to afford Uber and don’t have access other modes of transport.
California has done more than any state to promote widespread adoption of electric vehicles and recently announced new measures. The state is pursuing an EV strategy, but the tradeoffs are not yet fully evaluated.
A recent ProposalCalifornia Air Resources Board (CARB), which is the state’s clean air watchdog, requires that EVs built after 2026 have batteries that retain at least 80% of their power for a minimum of 15 years. This durability requirement is meant to encourage the resale and use of used EVs. It assures purchasers that the battery has enough life to continue to run the car.
Current federal rulesEV batteries must last for eight years or 100,000 miles. Manufacturers make batteries to meet this standard and will replace batteries below 70% capacity.
California’s goal of reducing greenhouse gases emissions is supported by the widespread use of EVs, even used ones. However, this proposal could have undesirable consequences such as batteries being discarded before their useful life is up; adding weight to the vehicle and decreasing its efficiency; and increasing the cost of batteries which could slow down market adoption for EVs.
The proposal could also overthrow the nascent EV-battery recycling industry, which is racing for the nearly 16 billion poundsEnd of life for approximately 403 million lithium-ion EV battery batteries by 2040
This mandate will have an impact on battery-related environmental emissions in ways not fully understood or analyzed. Every stage of the battery life cycle, from extraction of raw materials to manufacturing, use, charging, secondary usage outside the EV, and eventual recycling, has emissions properties that must all be considered when creating public policies.
Focusing on maximising value and minimising emissions at every stage of the EV batteries life cycle would be a better direction. California leaders, and others, should promote policies to create a circular economic model for EV batteries. This is similar to the approach taken for lead-acid battery. This approach is embodied within a set of principles created by the University of Michigan Center for Sustainable Systems.
This approach is fundamentally about educating the battery technology development community through a sustainability lens, as the EV market grows. The green principles use data-driven methods to help material suppliers, manufacturers of battery and vehicle batteries, national labs, consumers, and recyclers make informed decisions about sustainable battery management practices.
As the world continues to adopt EVs, policy directives, such those being promoted by CARB, must be supported by data and science.
The single outcome of sufficient battery lifespan in used EVs is not enough to make progress towards a circular economy for batteries that minimizes its full life cycle environmental and emission impacts.
The primary goal of EV adoption is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. This should be the start of any policy discussion.
Steve Christensen serves as the executive director for the Responsible Battery Coalition.
