Most of the electricity used to power battery electric vehicles (BEVs) is generated by power plants that burn fossil fuels, producing upstream greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change. When ordinary people estimate the environmental impact of the various light duty powertrains, many assume that the upstream emissions created by BEVs are roughly equivalent to the tailpipe emissions of internal combustion engine vehicles (ICEVs). Experts who carefully quantify vehicle emissions disagree with this intuitive misconception, which grossly underestimates the extraordinary volume of ICEV tailpipe emissions and fails to account for the significant upstream emissions associated with the production and distribution of gasoline. Before a gallon of gas is pumped into an ICEV’s tank, it has already generated a sizable quantity of carbon dioxide.
The International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) is a highly respected authority on the decarbonization of the transportation sector, providing unbiased analysis and policy recommendations to help guide the international climate effort. The nonprofit published a study in 2021 that compared the life-cycle emissions of all the major powertrains, finding that “only battery electric and hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles have the potential to achieve the magnitude of life-cycle GHG emission reductions needed to meet Paris Agreement goals.” According to the ICCT, the life-cycle emissions of BEVs in the United States are 60%-68% lower than comparable ICEVs.
The analysis from the ICCT indicates that a considerable portion of the emissions disparity between BEVs and ICEVs is due to upstream emissions generated by the production and distribution of gasoline. During its lifespan, an average, medium-size, U.S. ICEV purchased in 2021 will create just over 250 grams of carbon dioxide for each kilometer it travels. The vast majority of its copious life-cycle emissions will enter the atmosphere as exhaust, but a little more than 50 of its 250 grams will be generated upstream. According to the ICCT, one liter of U.S. gasoline creates 2.16 kilograms of carbon dioxide when it is ignited and 0.69 kilograms of upstream carbon dioxide as it is manufactured and distributed. The long, complex manufacturing process includes the extraction and processing of crude oil and its subsequent transport to gasoline refineries.
A similar BEV will generate just over 100 grams of carbon dioxide to travel each kilometer of its lifelong journey, with about two thirds of its emissions originating upstream to generate and deliver its electric fuel. The energy expended to manufacture a BEV accounts for most of the remaining one third of its life-cycle emissions. It takes more energy to build a BEV than it does to build a comparable ICEV, and naysayers will often argue that the BEV manufacturing process creates enough additional emissions to fully negate a BEV’s lifelong environmental superiority. Obviously, the ICCT’s analysis contradicts this cynical, indefensible argument. Their comprehensive assessment incorporates the relatively small disparity in manufacturing emissions cited by naysayers, and BEVs trounce ICEVs when long-term fuel consumption is taken into account.
A broad understanding of all upstream emissions should help assure conscientious consumers that the purchase of an efficient BEV will indeed contribute to the urgent global effort against climate change. Yes, a vehicle powered by electric fuel produces significant upstream emissions, but so does a vehicle powered by gasoline.
