By P Gosselin
Germany’s online FOCUS magazine has a commentary by Sebastian Viehmann on the fallacy of “Zero Emissions” and the EU’s misleading tailpipe measurements.
Viehmann argues that labeling electric vehicles (EVs) as completely “zero-emission” is misleading. While EVs do not have a tailpipe, their carbon footprint depends heavily on how the electricity used to charge them is generated—especially since fossil-fuel plants often supply power during high-demand nighttime and evening hours.
Extracting the raw materials that are needed to build the cars, especially the batteries, is far from being friendly to the environment.
E-cars fall far short of true climate neutrality
Citing research from KIT (Karlsruhe Institute of Technology) and a study from the Technical University of Munich (TUM) that anayzed 19 studies and 47 scenarios, the FOCUS article notes that battery-electric vehicles typically reduce CO2 emissions by only about 41% compared to combustion engines, falling far short of true climate neutrality. E cars
Viehmann also criticizes the EU’s regulatory approach of measuring emissions solely at the tailpipe, arguing that this political focus creates a distorted picture, allegedly supported by lobbying efforts to force the mass adoption of electric cars.
““This ‘tailpipe’ approach by the EU, i.e., measuring emissions only at the exhaust pipe, was always nonsense and can only be explained by the EU wanting to politically push the electric car and even paying lobby organizations like ‘Transport & Environment’ to influence MPs,” Viehmann writes.
The FOCUS author concludes that eliminating EVs is not the solution, as they still significantly reduce emissions. However, the author calls for a more honest and open approach, suggesting that alternative non-fossil fuels (like e-fuels or HVO) should be promoted for combustion engines, and that EU climate targets for the transport sector may need to be adjusted to realistic levels to prevent the economic dismantling of the European automotive industry.
