Public Information and Awareness (4)

Editor’s Note: These series are selected from manual Electric Vehicle Community Market Launch Manual: A Guide to Prepare Your Community for Electric Vehicles which was prepared by the Electric Transportation Coalition (ETC) and the Electric Vehicle Association of the Americas (EVAA) in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT).

Batteries

Communicators must have a clear understanding of battery development and battery recycling, including:

  • State-of-the-art and emerging battery technologies
  • The local community’s air quality concerns
  • External sources of emissions in the community
  • Government/industry goal to assure that all batteries developed are recyclable and nontoxic
  • Current lead-acid battery recycling and rates of recycling

From a public communications standpoint, battery recycling is one of the more complex issues that must be discussed with the general public and key policymakers. This complexity can be misunderstood and create opposition for EVs. For example, in mid-1995, an article in Science cited a study that raised concerns about the potential environmental impact of the production and reprocessing of large amounts of lead-acid batteries. Because most EVs today carry lead-acid battery packs, the article implied that when such batteries are produced, used, and then recycled, air emissions of lead would be greater than for an internal combustion-engine vehicle operating on leaded gasoline.

The article and study were found by experts in the field to be misleading and not factual. Letters to the editor of Science cited numerous flaws. For example, researchers from Argonne National Laboratory found that the study overestimated potential air emissions of lead by a factor of 5-50. The Union of Concerned Scientists faulted the study for using outdated data on batteries and electric vehicles and for overestimating the potential increase in lead demand resulting from use of EVs. A researcher from Princeton University’s Center for Energy and Environmental Studies noted that the study failed to discuss the small market for EV batteries within the context of the immense market for automotive starter batteries, by far the primary consumer of lead. Many specialists pointed out the difficulty of performing such a complex environmental study, and requested a more detailed and careful review of all the issues involved. The Electric Vehicle Association of the Americas has summarized the problems with this study in a technical brief, drawing on information from utility, component, and automotive industry sources.

Communicators need to be aware of the latest technical information to offset such problems. For example, the lead issue raised by the article could be addressed up front and include information on the advanced batteries now being developed for the next generation of EVs.

Community Integration

Local governments must provide a number of EV infrastructure systems to ensure successful EV introduction. Local policymakers must be educated on the need for adopting building, electrical, and health and safety codes; incentives to support EV usage; and training of local emergency response personnel. Some sample communications messages and strategies follow:

  • Communicate the importance of EV charging requirements and disseminate available information to ensure deployment of the necessary infrastructure in residential and commercial buildings
  • Provide information on the mechanics of EV charging, the surrounding safety issues, and upgrades to existing wiring configurations that may be required
  • Provide promotional literature on the advantages of EVs
  • Provide vehicle demonstrations and technical overviews to police and fire personnel
  • Perform rescue drills using actual EVs

Where appropriate, use the information contained in the American Coalition for Traffic Safety document entitled Traffic Safety Electric & Hybrid Vehicle Emergency Rescue Training Program (see EV Emergency Response information provided in the EV Charging Facilities/Vehicle System Support section of this Volume).

The case study below highlights one way to reach rescue personnel:

GM PrEView Drive Program
General Motors field service engineers met with Ft. Lauderdale community fire and rescue leaders in October 1995. The GM engineers gave a thorough overview of the GM Impact, highlighting its various technical and safety features. A fire and rescue instructional video was shown, and a manual put together by Florida Power & Light Company, ‘‘Impact Emergency Responder information Booklet,’’ was provided for distribution to each department’s personnel (a copy of thisdocumentcanbefoundinVol.III).

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June 10, 2008 · Filed Under Electric Car Conversion Blog

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