Opinion: Electric car batteries, we’re at a crossroads
Quebec’s plan to electrify transportation definitely has the wind in its sails.
But there’s a storm brewing on the horizon: once the first generations of electric cars are retired from our roads, what will be done with the massive amount of used batteries?
We’re talking about a major challenge here.
By 2030, Quebec will have to contend with an estimated 73,000 electric vehicle batteries that will have reached the end of their life.
Équiterre is working hard to ensure that Quebec’s electrification plans take into account the full value of electric car batteries to get the most use possible out of them and thereby limit the extraction of the strategic metals needed to manufacture new ones.
Over the coming months, the government will reveal how it plans to tackle this challenge, through a regulatory reform of the Extended Producer Responsibility principle - the EPR for short.
WHAT IS EPR
EPR is a way to hold businesses accountable for the goods they produce.
Among other things, it dictates how these goods must be managed once they reach the end of their life.
The concept isn’t new. We already have EPR regulations for electronics and paint cans, for example.
As for the responsibility for electric vehicle batteries, the Quebec government is currently drafting new rules to regulate the automobile industry to determine how these batteries will be managed in the coming years.
We are concerned about the pace of discussions surrounding this crucial component of transportation electrification in Quebec.
In our opinion, the consultation process was far too brief to result in adequate policy.
WORTH THEIR WEIGHT IN COLD
The current EPR regulations are not strong enough to ensure that we squeeze as much life as possible out of these batteries.
Under the current plan, electric vehicle battery recovery is based on a ten-year lifespan.
Ten years is an arbitrary figure and there is a risk that batteries may be retired prematurely rather than doing all we can to extend their useful life.
Electric car batteries should not be removed from vehicles before it is absolutely necessary.
We’re also calling for new targets in the new EPR plan that encourage reuse.
Squeezing more life out of an object is the most effective way of shrinking its environmental footprint.
If there are no reuse targets baked into the plan, we won’t get the results we need.
We need mechanisms to encourage reuse.
Electronics are a good example of how poorly our systems encourage reuse.
According to the latest data, only 10 per cent of the electronics recovered under the EPR got a second life.
Once they can no longer power a car, electric vehicle batteries could live a second life elsewhere, before being recycled.
They can be used to store solar or wind energy, or to power smaller modes of transportation, such as boats.
Electric batteries are worth their weight in gold.
The risk of wasting these valuable resources is great, but the opportunity is greater still to get the most out of them without adversely impacting the climate and the environment.
The Legault government must seize this opportunity.
Signatories:
Amélie Côté, Analyst, Reduction at the source, Équiterre
Andréanne Brazeau, Analyst, Sustainable mobility, Équiterre
Valérie Tremblay, Intern, Sustainable mobility, Équiterre
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Raised in Sask. after his family fled Hungary, this man spent decades spying on communists for the RCMP
As a Communist Party member in Calgary in the early 1940s, Frank Hadesbeck performed clerical work at the party office, printed leaflets and sold books.
Bird flu, measles top 2025 concerns for Canada's chief public health officer
As we enter 2025, Dr. Theresa Tam has her eye on H5N1 bird flu, an emerging virus that had its first human case in Canada this year.
DEVELOPING Body found in wheel well of plane at Maui airport
A person was found dead in the wheel well of a United Airlines flight to Maui on Tuesday.
Police identify victim of Christmas Day homicide in Hintonburg, charge suspect
The Ottawa Police Service says the victim who has been killed on Christmas Day in Hintonburg has been identified.
Christmas shooting at Phoenix airport leaves 3 people wounded
Police are investigating a Christmas shooting at Sky Harbor Airport in Phoenix that left three people injured by gunfire.
Ship remains stalled on St-Lawrence River north of Montreal
A ship that lost power on the St. Lawrence River on Christmas Eve, remains stationary north of Montreal.
Your kid is spending too much time on their phone. Here's what to do about it
Wondering what your teen is up to when you're not around? They are likely on YouTube, TikTok, Instagram or Snapchat, according to a new report.
Bird flu kills more than half the big cats at a Washington sanctuary
Bird flu has been on the rise in Washington state and one sanctuary was hit hard: 20 big cats – more than half of the facility’s population – died over the course of weeks.
6,000 inmates stage Christmas Day escape from high-security Mozambique prison
At least 6,000 inmates escaped from a high-security prison in Mozambique's capital on Christmas Day after a rebellion, the country's police chief said, as widespread post-election riots and violence continue to engulf the country.