Are electric vehicles actually healthy for the environment?

Conversation surrounding electric vehicles and the environment has been steadily on the rise as companies such as Tesla and Volkswagen vow to "save the planet" with low-emission models. However, the most important step to keeping a healthy ecosystem is educating potential consumers about both benefits and risks of lithium-ion technology in a world already undergoing heavy pollution.

Everyone knows that electric cars have zero tailpipe emissions, and corporations are quick to advertise their new green business model - Nissan's Leaf is just one example.

But how eco-friendly is the electric vehicle, really?

According to data compiled by the Alternative Fuels Data Center, provided by the U.S. Department of Energy, you can expect the average gasoline-powered car to emit 11,435 pounds of CO2 into the atmosphere yearly.

In contrast, energy used to power a Chevrolet Volt or a Tesla Model S comes from a wall socket, which may be supplied by a coal plant; however, even then, the electric motor's efficiency reduces the total carbon footprint.

As such, the average American all-electric vehicle pollutes an equivalent of 4,455 pounds of CO2 annually.

But that's not all - more than 60 percent of Oregon's power grid is supplied by hydroelectric power.

As such, the average Oregonian electric vehicle emits a comparatively measly 1,232 pounds annually.

The relationship between carbon emissions and the health of the environment is a topic of widespread debate; however, there are other considerations worth highlighting in the electric vehicle market. To be precise, the chemical composition of electric vehicle batteries raises two primary environmental concerns.

Ingredients found in any Lithium-ion battery can make the item toxic, corrosive, explosive and downright dangerous; this is the first concern. In any new market, even if companies provide healthy reusing and recycling programs, there will inevitably be people who dispose of items improperly. At current, lithium-ion recycling stands as low as five percent in many parts of the world, largely due to lack of information. If scrapping high-capacity batteries in landfills remains the norm, we can expect to observe high levels of pollution and serious danger to public health, not dissimilar to the situation in Flint, Michigan today.

Another environmental impact influenced by the advent of lithium-ion technology is the acquisition of raw resources.

Cobalt is an element used increasingly in the modern world since it acts as an essential component in all-too-common rechargeable batteries.

Found within laptops, cell phones, and now cars in massive supply, cobalt is a highly toxic metal obtained from mines all over the world.

These mines, many of which located near poor villages in central Africa, impose serious danger to their workers.

Children, as young as four years old, are exposed to metal physically toxic to the skin.

Miners breathe cobalt fumes and regularly develop lung conditions.

Cave-ins and accidents are frequent, with as many as six per month, killing hundreds (if not thousands) yearly.

Obviously there is a cost, not only in the lives of those miners but also in the world's ecosystem, if recycling efforts are ignored. The more we recycle, the fewer materials must be extracted and bought from African laborers, and the fewer materials are left to seep into groundwater. The solution, it appears, lies solely with the companies who manufacture electric vehicles. Tesla and other corporations need to pour resources into high-level recycling and filtration techniques on account of mass health and safety.

In an electric vehicle battery, there lay thousands of individual cells that act as separate charging compartments - a microcosm within the whole. Even when handling a dead electric car, there are often many such cells that are perfectly serviceable, even if others have failed. Reusing efforts are already fairly strong for these healthy battery cells, which itself is a healthy step forward.

However, research also needs to be conducted in how to recycle even the dead cells, such that new batteries can be manufactured from old materials. Techniques such as smelting are more difficult with lithium-ion technology than with past battery types, due to newfound complexity in the design of the systems. This complexity grants lithium-ion its superior properties, but presses technical challenges on recyclers.

In a decade or so, the first wave of electric vehicles will start reaching the end of their life. Recycling plants will start being serviceable (and perhaps even profitable) ventures, but at current there aren't cars available that are old enough to perfect these complex processes.

The field is burgeoning and the possibilities are exciting for electric vehicle businesses and consumers both, but sustainability is what's important in the long run. I know I'd be excited to purchase a sleek, fast e-vehicle, but I'll be sure to conduct research into local recycling options and company policies beforehand. The beauty of free market is that we, the consumers, always have the option to vote with our dollar. I implore everyone to conduct research into battery recycling and the sourcing of your vehicle's materials before making your final purchase.

Ethan Ferwalt is a senior at Sisters High School.