Hyperdrive
How Green Is Your Electric Car?
This isn’t exactly a zero-emissions vehicle.
This article is for subscribers only.
The biggest selling point of the electric car has long been the fact that it’s emissions-free. Turns out that’s not exactly true.
Trading in your gasoline-guzzling car for an electric vehicle is a lot like shifting the emissions from an exhaust pipe to a power plant. EVs run off electricity, and that electricity — unless you’re lucky enough to live in a place like Norway — is coming from a mix of emissions-intensive fossil fuels, nuclear and, to a lesser extent, renewable energy.