In 2018, it was announced there would be a complete ban on new diesel and petrol vehicles. The government’s plan is that by 2040, every car on our roads will give out zero-emissions.
The government are aiming to improve our air quality, lower pollution and prevent further negative climate change.
What is the problem with petrol and diesel cars?
Petrol and diesel cars produce a huge amount of emissions which add to our ever growing air pollution. As per the Royal Colleges of Physicians and the Royal Colleges of Paediatrics and Child Health, outdoor air pollution contributes to approximately 40,000 early deaths per year in the UK.
Electric cars run solely on electricity, taking away all of the carbon emissions if you choose to power them with renewable electricity. Brands such as Tesla even manufacture their own batteries, which can be used to charge the power your home and vehicle.
At our head office in Leicester, we had 4 electric car charging points installed, alongside a solar panel system, in an effort to reduce carbon emissions and be advocates for using renewable electricity to power our vehicles. It’s even in our branding – “The future is electric.”
Electric cars make up only around 1% of all new car sales in the UK and there are a number of benefits to buying one.
You may see it being talked about everywhere, but climate change is real and it’s an issue we are facing now.
What are the emissions doing to our planet?
Our sun is 149.6 million kilometres away from earth, but that doesn’t mean we don’t benefit from it. As sunlight reaches our atmosphere, it passes through and warms the earth’s surface. The heat then radiates back to space, but because of the build of gases in our atmosphere, a lot of the heat cannot escape.
Carbon dioxide in our atmosphere holds the heat. This prevents the heat from exiting our atmosphere, causing the global temperature to rise. Methane given out by landfill sites absorbs and traps 20% more heat than carbon dioxide, causing even further problems.
This trapped heat is contributing to melting ice caps, retracting glaciers and subsequent rising sea levels.
Our sea levels are rising 3.3 millimetres per year and the global temperature has increased 1.9 degrees Fahrenheit since 1880. As the temperature rises in the atmosphere, melting away ice caps and glaciers from above, rising sea temperatures cause the ice caps and glaciers to melt from the bottom too. Eventually, the two will meet and our ice caps and glaciers will be completely gone.
As ice melts, it turns to water and this is what is causing the sea levels to rise. If we carry on causing them to rise, they will eventually submerge the world in water. A more short term problem is that it will lead to massive flooding and avalanches as it melts, putting our lives at even more risk.
How will using renewable energy to power an electric car help?
Solar panels and wind turbines are the ideal way to power your lifestyle. Producing zero emissions and running solely off 100% renewable energy sources, they will significantly reduce your carbon footprint. Sunlight or wind goes in and is converted in to electricity. We are never going to run out of sunlight or wind, or at least not for millions of years, making it the ideal solution.
You can then use this electricity for whatever you like. No gas, no coal, no emissions. You could charge your car solely off the power you generate with your renewable energy source if you have the correct kW capacity.
We can even take it one step further by switching to an energy supplier who sells 100% renewable electricity. Every supplier is obliged under law to provide at least some renewable electricity, but not necessarily 100%.
Make the switch to an all electric lifestyle today and install Fischer heaters.
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BLOG024
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