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Opinion: Electric vehicles are not ready for broad use

We neither have the technology nor the economy to back what is in fact one of the biggest grifts we've ever seen.
14 Electric vehicle Tesla charging winter
Winter climates and cold weather decrease the range of electric vehicles but advances in battery technology and faster, more widely-distributed charging stations in north central B.C. locations is making it easier for EV owners to get to their destinations.

I think it high time that governments and those 'woke' subscribers to electric vehicles really took a hard look at what it is they are pushing.

EVs are no better than gas vehicles. We neither have the technology nor the economy to back what is in fact one of the biggest grifts we've ever seen. All vehicles are delivered using ships, trains, and trucks, all of which use diesel fuel. All vehicles are built using steel, aluminum, and plastics, which are manufactured using fossil fuels or are derivatives of the same. The processes for extracting the raw materials to make the constituent parts and the factories, use fossil fuels and have a carbon footprint; no difference despite the vehicle's badging.

The manufacture, disposal, and constituent parts required for batteries, are as toxic and eco-unfriendly as producing fossil fuel if not more so. The sheer cost of battery replacement means that far fewer EVs can be used beyond the life of a battery, certainly fewer than cars with well-maintained gasoline engines. Like many 'ideas', the ideal is certainly better than the actuality. EVs are not at a point where they are economically feasible or any better than a gas vehicle...not yet.

Yes, simple comparisons of point A to B concerning fuel consumption or energy used may show some encouraging 'facts.’ The reality, though, is that any venture must be looked at as a whole and we do not. Anyone looking with disdain at a vehicle that is gas powered over those that are EVs or hybrids needs to recognize that these non-gasoline vehicles were not grown, they were not harvested from a field, or picked from a tree. They were produced in the same factory as the gas models. EVs as said require the same materials and they are sourced the same way, and power? Well, power is produced in different ways all over the world, and not always cleanly.

I do not write-off EVs completely. They have come a long way, but keep in mind that when the first hybrids came out, they lost much of their 'economy' once winter tires were installed. Not everywhere is suitable for an EV, but if it makes you feel better while you order your plastic wrapped parcels from Amazon, fine.

Like paper straws, they just don't work, not yet. Also, truck country needs trucks, so does the economy.

Sorry, Vancouver.

Michael Maslen

Prince George