A climate policy based on a shift towards electric cars can consolidate existing inequalities

At the end of this month, the climate commission will give the government its final advice on how New Zealand can meet its climate goals.

Authors

• 
  Alistair Woodward
  

  Professor at the University of Auckland’s School of Population Health

• 
  Kirsty Wild
  

  Senior Research Fellow, Public Health, University of Auckland

• 
  Rhys Jones
  

  Lecturer in Māori Health at the University of Auckland

New Zealand is committed to achieving net zero emissions of long-lived greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide) and reducing methane emissions from animals by 24-47% by 2050.

The Commission’s draft advisory proposal proposed electrifying the country’s vehicle fleet in order to best reduce traffic emissions.

There are a number of reasons to question this approach. One of them is justice – reliance on electric cars to achieve climate goals carries the risk of embedding existing health inequalities.

Our first concern is that electric cars are not reducing transport emissions fast enough to meet our net zero carbon target by 2050. And without rapid emission reductions, climate change will continue largely uncontrolled and hit disadvantaged population groups the hardest.

According to the Commission, domestic transport emissions need to be cut in half by 2035 and the path favored by the Commission is based on shifting 40% of light vehicles from fossil fuels to electricity. Others argue that given the slowness of emissions reductions in other sectors, larger cuts will be needed sooner.

Even with the Commission’s (relatively) modest goal of electrification, there are two problems.

First, it is doubtful whether the goal can be achieved. Barriers include the low starting point (electric cars currently make up around 2% of the vehicle fleet), international competition for supplies and the high cost of electric vehicles, and the slow turnover of the old fleet (the average lifespan of cars in New Zealand) is around 14 years ), not an obvious source of suitable used vehicles, and the work required to build a comprehensive charging infrastructure.

Second, as the Ministry of Transport’s most recent Green Paper shows, this would not bend the emissions curve far enough to meet the 2050 target even if the 40% EV target were met.

Basically, the number of private vehicles needs to be reduced, the distance traveled needs to be reduced, and alternative modes of transport (including electric buses and electric bicycles) need to replace car journeys. To make cities and towns more attractive to walking and cycling, it is also necessary to remove serious amounts of carbon from traffic.

Uncontrolled climate change increases the disadvantage

If emissions continue to rise, climate change will unfold unhindered. This is inherently unfair as climate change exacerbates social disadvantage, including conditions that lead to poorer health outcomes for the Māori and Pacific populations. Examples are infectious diseases, mental health problems, and chronic respiratory diseases.

Climate change will exacerbate the threat of food insecurity, which is currently disproportionately affecting people in Māori and the Pacific due to global pressures on food production. Living on the outskirts in poorer quality homes means Māori and Pacific communities are more affected by extreme storms and floods.

People in lower socioeconomic groups are also at greater risk from climate change, for example from working outdoors, and are less able to afford measures such as air conditioning to adapt to the effects of climate change.

Punishments in a world dominated by cars

The electric car may be an energy solution, but it is definitely not a transportation solution. If New Zealand relies on this technology to reduce emissions, the price will maintain an unfair and harmful transportation system.

People without a car (10% of Māori households compared to around 5% of non-Māori households) have difficulty accessing essential goods and services and are more likely to be socially excluded.

A high volume of high-speed car traffic that is more common in low-income communities because they are closer to busy roads that make walking and cycling difficult. It also reduces social interactions in the neighborhood and causes unhealthy air and noise pollution.

Electric motors do not prevent social segregation and do not eliminate noise and air pollution. Road accident injuries, which are known to be more common among disadvantaged groups, are not reduced by electric cars.

Indeed, there is concern that road trauma will be more common due to the greater distances traveled, the heavier weight of electric vehicles compared to gasoline or diesel equivalents, and the increased risk for pedestrians due to the quiet and fast acceleration of electric vehicles.

Missing co-benefits

A transportation system based on cars prevents physical activity, one of the cheapest and most effective ways to prevent diseases such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and many types of cancer. These are the leading causes of death in New Zealand and particularly affect Māori, the Pacific and low-income New Zealanders.

If we just focus on moving what’s under the hood from gasoline to electric, we’re missing out on the opportunity for win-win results.

It is not yet clear how the move to electric cars will be paid for, but it is likely that the costs will not be evenly distributed. Indeed, with climate policies that rely on individual households to pay for new technologies, there is always the risk that inequalities will worsen.

The dependence on cars is shaped by social factors and is shaped by the geography of affordable living space, the demands on work and access to alternative means of transport. This means that people on low incomes are particularly reliant on cars, but are unable to switch to electric vehicles unless there is large subsidy or a source of cheap used cars.

In summary, climate policies that are heavily reliant on electric cars do little to improve poor health outcomes and ensure a just transition. Health, equity and sustainability require bigger changes, more transportation and environments with less need to travel by car.

Alistair Woodward has received funding from the Health Research Council and Waka Kotahi. It is associated with Bike Auckland.

Kirsty Wild receives funding from Waka Kotahi and is affiliated with Women in Urbanism Aotearoa and All Aboard Aotearoa.

Rhys Jones receives funding from the New Zealand Health Research Council.

/ Courtesy of The Conversation. This material is from the original organization and may be of a temporal nature and may be edited for clarity, style and length.