In an effort to mitigate the effects of climate change, countries around the globe are including electric vehicles in their plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
For example, a federal mandate in Canada aims to ensure that one-fifth of all passenger cars, SUVs, and vans sold in Canada are electric by 2026. By 2035, if the mandate is to be To do this, every passenger vehicle sold in Canada will need to be electric.
But what will this change really do for the environment?
A team of researchers from USC’s Keck School of Medicine aimed to find out, conducting what they describe as one of the first studies to analyze the environmental and health impacts of electric vehicles on a regional scale. area. Their research has linked wider integration of zero-emission vehicles with lower levels of local air pollution and some respiratory problems.
“When we think about actions related to climate change, it is often at the global level,” said Erika Garcia, assistant professor of population and public health at Keck School of Medicine.
“But the idea that changes made at the local level can improve the health of your own community can be a powerful message to the public and to policymakers.”
Using data spanning 2013 to 2019, Garcia and team of researchers compared zero-emission vehicle registrations with levels of air pollution and asthma-related emergency room visits. asthma in California. They found that in areas with more electric vehicle use, emergency room visits decreased with pollution levels.
Sandrah Eckel, associate professor of population and public health sciences and lead author of the study, said their findings offer hope amid the realities of climate worries.
“We are excited about turning the conversation to climate change mitigation and adaptation, and these results show that the transition to [electric vehicles] is an important part of that.
Garcia added that the study also assessed the disadvantages faced by people living in low-income communities, where higher levels of pollution and related respiratory problems are common.
The researchers found that adoption of zero-emission vehicles was slower in low-resource neighborhoods than in more affluent areas.
The study attributes this disparity to what the researchers call the “acceptance gap” – which refers to groups of people who cannot afford newer electric vehicles.
According to research published in the journal Holistic Environmental Science, the application gap “threatens the equitable distribution of possible co-benefits”.
“If research continues to support our findings, we want to make sure that communities that are already suffering so much traffic-related air pollution are actually enjoying the benefits,” Garcia said in the statement. benefit from this climate mitigation effort.
