Electric vehicles contribute more to river pollution, says Environment Agency chief
Electric vehicles contribute more to pollution in rivers than other cars because of their weight, the chairman of the Environment Agency has said.
Alan Lovell said road run-off from tyres – water containing pollution that runs off the tarmac – had a significant negative impact on pollution in the UK’s waterways.
Run-off from towns, cities and transport, including microplastics from tyres, contributes nearly 20 per cent of the pollution problem in England’s rivers, according to a report from the Environmental Audit Committee.
“People are worried about tyres now, and electric vehicles, ironically, are worse for that because of their weight,” he told The Telegraph. “There’s a lot of work to be done on that and we need to take appropriate action there.”
The heavier a car, the greater the amount of particles released through braking or from tyre wear and the average weight of a petrol or diesel car was 150kg lighter than an electric car according to an Autotrader study last year.
Finding a solution to vehicle pollution requires discussions with manufacturers on the materials that go into tyres, said Mr Lovell. “It’s about going back to the root cause,” he said.
Experts say that the impact of EVs will reduce as battery technology improvements mean cars steadily get lighter and that the growing popularity of SUVs is cancelling out the difference between petrol and diesel, and electric cars.
“Focusing just on tyre pollution ignores that electric vehicles are far better than combustion engine cars when it comes to air pollution overall,” said Anna Krajinska from NGO Transport and Environment.
“Switching from conventional internal combustion engine (ICE) cars to EVs instantly eliminates all toxic tailpipe pollution such as nitrogen oxides (NOx), particles, and carbon monoxide (CO).
She added: “Data suggests that while EVs may pollute slightly more from tyres, the increase is offset through lower pollution from the tailpipe and brakes.”
The chairman of the EA, England’s environmental regulator, was speaking as the Government launched a new plan to tackle water company pollution in waterways.
The plan includes possible two-year prison sentences for water company bosses found to be obstructing investigations into wrongdoing, and a ban on bonuses at companies that fail to meet environmental, consumer and regulatory standards.
Steve Reed, the Environment Secretary, said the plan would be the first step to reform the sector and end pollution in England’s rivers.
But Mr Lovell said it was not well understood that many of the problems were due to agriculture or urban run-off.
“There is a perception amongst the public that it’s very largely a water company issue, and I think that we need to develop the same sort of measures that have been described today on agriculture,” he said. “I think most farmers are doing a good job and are learning and doing their best. Some aren’t.
“And I’m completely clear that we also need to be harder in our regulation of some aspects of agriculture.”
He added: “Road run-off is a very difficult one. I think we are all gradually realising that the impact of that is more significant than thought.”
Water companies have agreed with the Government that ending sewage spills should be a priority, but have said bills will need to rise higher than Ofwat has said it will allow for the next five years.
“Bills do need to go up,” said Mr Lovell. “I think people do need to recognize that they are paying a household average charge of £1.30 a day, for which you can hardly buy a bottle of water.”