California sells more electric cars than any other state. Many of them in Southern California were reduced to rubble during the recent wildfires in Los Angeles. And while the lithium-ion batteries contained in EVs do not burst into flames, frequent fire But when it happens, it creates a very hot fire and takes a lot of water to extinguish. When the power goes out, it leaves behind a lot of toxic waste to clean up. It's a new headache and irony about electric cars: Things that are supposed to help the environment are being burned by wildfires caused by global warming. And batteries leave environmental damage behind.
According to information from S&P Global, quoted by BloombergAs of October 2024, there were more than 431,000 Tesla vehicles in use in the Los Angeles area. This does not include other brands of cars.
EV cars can catch fire. Tens or thousands of gallons of water It is extinguished because the lithium ions inside the battery can create oxygen when burned. This means that more water is needed to cool the combustion unit. Tesla has published a guide for fire departments recommending how to extinguish fires from its vehicles. General Motors has provided one. Four hours of training for first responders. About how to quell the stubborn fire that refuses to be extinguished.
Electric vehicles have a number of specific disadvantages that must be considered. Often weighs a lot This causes problems with road infrastructure, for example, and charging large numbers of electric cars can put a strain on electric utilities. Here are some reasons why some city dwellers are opposed to electric cars. It claims that people in cities should use public transport if they really want to support a green future. They come with conflicts.
Bloomberg Talk to firefighters about how a previous fire in Maui gave them a plan to clean up batteries in Southern California:
Robert Rezende, San Diego firefighter Lithium battery hazard experts who will help with the cleanup say protocols developed during the 2023 fires in Maui will be used in Los Angeles. But the scale of this event and the dangers are much greater.
“The state has seen other fires. But it doesn't happen in this city. Because there are so many neighborhoods and structures you can expect to see more electric vehicles and other energy storage systems,” Resende said. “We expect to see some pretty big elevators.”
In Maui, the Environmental Protection Agency has shipped more than 30 tons of lithium batteries from more than 1,400 properties for recycling.
Electric car fire has very rareThe National Transportation Safety Board finds about 25 fires for every 100,000 electric cars sold.
Electric motors don't generate much heat, so fires often occur from serious accidents when batteries break. and the chemicals and sensitive internal components are unstable. release heat and create a self-perpetuating cycle to heat up uncontrollably. Of course, extreme heat from outside sources, such as forest fires, can also cause batteries to heat up.
That's a shame, because electric cars have a lot of batteries. Therefore, there is a large amount of toxic waste that must be disposed of and efforts are made to recycle it. Rain can cause toxic pollutants to enter the ocean if not cleaned up in time.
Of course, countless studies show that the greenhouse gas emissions over the entire life cycle of electric cars will be the same. Up to 70% lower than gasoline or dieselEven accounting for mineral extraction or charging. Unless you lean towards the more extreme end of the spectrum and think cars should be eliminated entirely, EVs are still likely better than alternative gas options.